Global Investment Law Watch – Exploring the legal and regulatory issues affecting the worldwide investment community.

United States: Who Could Have Guessed? Multiple Sponsors File for Prediction Market Based ETFs

Feb 19 2026

By: Thoreau A. Bartmann, Todd S. Fishman, Kevin R. Gustafson, and Sarah V. Riddell

In the last week, multiple ETF sponsors filed for first-of-their-kind ETFs based on event contracts tied to political outcomes. These funds would invest in swaps referencing binary event contracts—or directly in the contracts themselves—tied to which party controls the House and Senate in 2026, and which party wins the 2028 Presidential Election.

United States: The Judge Speaks: The SEC’s New Enforcement Director Provides First Glimpse into Her Priorities

Feb 13 2026

By: Thoreau Bartmann, Lance Dial, Stephen Topetzes, and Meghan Flinn

Judge Margaret Ryan, the newly-appointed director of the Enforcement Division of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave her first public remarks this week. Given the “new day” dawning at the SEC, many have been eager to hear her vison for the role of Enforcement at the SEC. Judge Ryan delivered!

United States: Saw This Coming: FINRA Proposes Rule Change to Permit Projected Performance

Feb 12 2026

By: Jessica D. Cohn, Lance C. Dial, and Derek N. Lacarrubba

Everyone wants to know what tomorrow will bring, and FINRA has proposed amendments to Rule 2210 (Proposed Amendments) that would give broker-dealers more flexibility to communicate exactly that – at least as it relates to projected performance and targeted returns. If adopted, the Proposed Amendments would more closely align FINRA Rule 2210 with the rule governing investment adviser marketing (the Marketing Rule).

United States: Predicting the Future of Prediction Markets

Jan 28 2026

By: Todd S. Fishman and Sarah V. Riddell

Prediction markets—once a niche for political mavens and crypto enthusiasts—are gaining traction as platforms become regulated entities and gamified tools attract a broader audience.

United States: New Year, New Marketing Rule FAQs

Jan 21 2026

By: Lance C. Dial, Jennifer L. Klass, and Pablo J. Man

On 15 January 2026, the SEC staff released two new FAQs addressing issues arising under Advisers Act Rule 206(4)-1 (the Marketing Rule). These FAQs provide important, if technical, guidance to advisers on key provisions of the Marketing Rule and show continued Staff willingness to issue guidance in the form of FAQs.

United States: Disgorgement Debate: Supreme Court to Hear Sripetch v. SEC

Jan 15 2026

By: Hayley Trahan-Liptak, Christopher F. Warner, and Bridget K. McKelvey

The Supreme Court will soon once again weigh in on the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement powers, this time addressing whether disgorgement is available without showing that victims suffered pecuniary harm. Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to hear SEC vs. Sripetch, et al., a Ninth Circuit decision affirming a disgorgement award despite the SEC’s failure to demonstrate defrauded investors suffered pecuniary harm.¹

Europe: UK Reform of Short Selling Regime–FCA Consultation

Dec 12 2025

By: Andrew Massey, Kai Zhang, and Ron Feldman

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is consulting on changes to the short selling regime in the United Kingdom (UK), as set out in Consultation Paper CP25/29.

Europe: UK FCA Looks to Accelerate Fund Tokenisation and Direct Dealing

Dec 01 2025

By: Andrew J. Massey, Kai Zhang, and Zainab Kuku

The FCA has published Consultation Paper CP25/28 with a view to accelerating the adoption of tokenisation by UK authorised funds. The consultation also proposes changes to allow direct dealing models, which would facilitate tokenisation as well as improve the operating environment for UK authorised funds generally.

Australia: ASIC’s REP 820: Raising the Bar for Australia’s Private Credit Market

Nov 18 2025

By: Matthew Watts and Michelle Huo

Australia’s private credit market has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, with some estimates valuing it at approximately $200 billion.

Europe: ESMA’s Draft RTS on Open-Ended Loan-Originating AIFs-AIFMD II in Practice

Oct 27 2025

By: Susanna Güven and Mathieu Volckrick

On 21 October 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) on open-ended loan-originating alternative investment funds (AIFs). This marks a key step in the implementation of Directive (EU) 2024/927 (AIFMD II), which updates the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) and Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) frameworks to strengthen rules on delegation, liquidity risk, supervisory reporting, depositary services, and loan origination.