U.S. Judge Abrams on Gag Orders: "What is the SEC So Afraid Of?"

US Federal Judge in New York Criticizes SEC ‘Gag Orders’ Policy

A US federal judge in New York on Friday called it “troubling” that a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) policy makes people who settle charges of fraud, insider trading or other agree not to deny them later.

Under the decades-old policy, defendants who settle without admitting to must agree not to publicly deny them. The practice, a standard in SEC settlements, has been upheld in courts despite drawing ire from critics including former defendants, the libertarian Cato Institute and other groups that favor limiting government power.

US District Judge Ronnie Abrams took said in a ruling that required “gag orders” clashes with the constitutional protection of free speech. “What is the SEC so afraid of? Any criticism, apparently—or, rather, anything that may even ‘create the impression’ of criticism—of that governmental agency,” Abrams wrote.

The judge nevertheless approved a settlement with a no-deny clause, following a ruling last year by the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals which said the practice was not unconstitutional.

CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero, the “Crypto-Knight”

A fearless US federal securities regulator has finally emerged, willing to speak truth to power and to stand up to Big Crypto: CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero, who has dedicated her life to public service and investor protection.

Hester Pierce may be the “Crypto-mom” and Chris Giancarlo may be the “Crypto-Dad” — But Romero is the “Crypto-Knight.”

In an extraordinary speech to a group of Wall Street traders, Christy Goldsmith Romero presented a thoughtful, meticulous and courageous discourse on the mammoth global financial systemic risk created by crypto, warning that crypto poses risks that could cause a crisis akin to the subprime crisis of 2008.

Amid recession worries, SEC whistleblower program needed now more than ever

In the 12 years since the SEC whistleblower program was established, its impact can be clearly seen in the numbers. The SEC Office of the Whistleblower has received nearly 60,000 tips, placed monetary sanctions exceeding $5 billion on fraudsters, paid whistleblowers over $1 billion for their courageous efforts, and helped return more than $1 billion to investors in recovered funds. Despite this incredible level of success, the fraud lobby is once again attempting to undermine and weaken the program, making disingenuous arguments about its efficacy and fairness.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler backs controversial clawback rule

A new Securities and Exchange Commission rule that would allow the agency to reclaim bonuses from certain executives should not discourage companies from going public, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said Friday.

The “clawback rule” broadens SEC regulators’ authority to recover incentive-based compensation to current and former executives of public companies that was awarded based on errors in their financial statements. Gensler told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that the agency is following through on a rule mandated by Congress.

“This was a straightforward thing that Congress said,” Gensler said. “If you’ve got the wrong faulty financials and somebody’s getting paid on those faulty financials, then they ought not keep the money. I think it’s pretty straightforward.”

Under Biden Administration, Wall Street Watchdog’s Fines Surge

Wall Street’s top watchdog this year collected some of its highest fines ever from firms accused of wrongdoing, underscoring the Biden administration’s tougher regulatory stance.

The Securities and Exchange Commission imposed 13 fines greater than $100 million on public companies during its latest fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, up from the prior year’s three cases at that level. In some other recent years, the SEC didn’t levy any fines that large.

Crypto.com Trading Volume Sinks 91% One Year After ‘Brave’ Matt Damon Ad

Whichever version of the Latin proverb you choose, Crypto.com’s exchange volume isn’t looking very brave, bold, or strong one year after unveiling its Matt Damon commercial.

In the past year, Crypto.com’s normalized exchange volume has dropped by 91%, from $4 billion to $380 million per day, using a 7-day average, according to CoinGecko. That’s not to say the ad is to blame for the drop-off, but the company’s bid at spurring growth with an A-list celebrity doesn’t seem to have helped much.

Ex-OpenSea Employee’s NFT Handling Runs into DOJ’s ‘Stradivarius’

Nathaniel Chastain, who allegedly bought and sold nonfungible tokens (NFTs) on the OpenSea app with secret information, was charged in June with wire fraud. The statute, along with the related mail fraud statute, is broad, adaptable and powerful. They’re federal prosecutors’ “Stradivarius, our Colt 45, our Louisville Slugger, our Cuisinart–and our true love,” federal judge and former prosecutor Jed Rakoff once quipped.

True love or not, wire fraud isn’t the typical approach in an “insider trading” case, which often involves securities fraud charges. But wire fraud can offer Justice Department prosecutors a key advantage in digital asset cases: the ability to dodge the knotty question of whether the asset is a security.