Law and regulation

George Canellos, who played a key role in the SEC's efforts to punish misconduct related to the 2008 financial crisis, is leaving the agency after more than four years.

Brokers selling higher-fee investments like non-traded real-estate investment trusts and derivative-backed structured notes may get more scrutiny this year after those markets grew in 2013.

Regulators are hoping to release an interim final rule next week designed to satisfy banker demands to change a provision of the Volcker Rule that threatens to force smaller institutions to take millions of dollars in write-offs.

FINRA has identified the suitability of the bonds of distressed municipalities for investors, as well as municipal advisor activity, as areas it will focus on in 2014.

The legal battle over the application of the Volcker Rule is unlikely to be resolved until mid-January.

Morgan Stanley said ex-broker Wilhelm Nash left before earning out bonus.

An arbitrator wants client records. What should you do?

The tax increases that took effect in 2013 should now be part of long-term planning because they aren't going away anytime soon.

Lawmakers are stepping up efforts to deter frivolous patent lawsuits against banks and a host of other companies.

The question triggers a whole array of responses. But after a five-year onslaught of new rules and enforcement, some see a brighter regulatory future for banks.

The Securities and Exchange Commission issued a staff report Friday to Congress on its disclosure rules for U.S. public companies, as part of the SEC’s efforts to modernize the disclosure requirements and reduce compliance costs for emerging growth companies.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. agreed to pay about $54.3 million to U.S. regulators and the Justice Department to resolve allegations it bribed officials in Ukraine to win tax refunds.

In her final column for American Banker, Editor-at-Large Barbara Rehm says there is no denying the system is safer than it was in 2007, and while further changes may be needed, it makes sense to "take a breather."

Deutsche Bank AG will pay $1.9 billion to settle claims that it didn’t provide adequate disclosure about mortgage-backed securities sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Lawmakers this week called on FINRA to explain its policies for expunging investor complaints about brokers from the public record, suggesting that the industry regulator should revisit the extent to which information is removed from the BrokerCheck database.

In the space of just a few hours, regulators issued -- and banks condemned -- guidance meant to clarify the impact of the Volcker rule on small institutions.

During his final press conference as chairman, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke cited progress made over the past twelve months, but left the door open to further changes.

The SEC said Tuesday that it has "increased its attention to securities violations by municipalities and other participants in the market for securities of cities and other governmental issuers," but did not give any statistics.

Companies usually keep a low profile when the SEC investigates them. Robert DePalo decided to sue.

Seeking to avoid the "embarrassment," "annoyance" and "expense" of a lawsuit, the CFP Board is asking a federal judge to quash most requests for documents and depositions from two planners who are suing the organization.