Regulatory Enforcement and Litigation – Global Investment Law Watch

United States: A Recipe for a Settlement: Why the SEC Sent This Private Fund Advisers “Season and Sell” Valuation Practices Back to the Kitchen.

Mar 09 2026

By: Thoreau Bartmann, Sasha Burstein, and Pablo Man

On 25 February 2026,¹ the SEC, in one of the few cases brought to-date against a private fund adviser under Chair Atkins, settled charges with a private fund adviser regarding its valuation practices. This case involved conduct dating back to the early days of the COVID market dislocations, with the SEC finding that the adviser failed to adequately fair value loans it originated and later sold to private fund clients in principal transactions despite significant changes in markets caused by the pandemic.

United States: Dele-great!: CFTC Staff Allows CPO Delegation Structures to Remain Intact

Mar 02 2026

By: Sarah Riddell, Pablo Man, and Martina Sandoval Iriarte

As previously discussed in our client alert, the industry celebrated the no-action relief from registration as a commodity pool operator (CPO) (the Relief). The Relief, however, raised certain questions in connection with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) staff’s class delegation relief under CFTC No-Action Letter No. 14-126 (Letter 14-126), which requires that the “Designated CPO” to whom the non-registrant (i.e., the “Delegating CPO”) delegates CPO responsibilities be a registered CPO. In particular, the Relief called into question whether private fund general partners or boards of directors of offshore private funds, who are Delegating CPOs, would need to continue delegating CPO responsibilities to a registered CPO pursuant to Letter 14-126 or whether they could instead delegate these responsibilities to a registered investment adviser that relied on the Relief.

United States: Second Circuit Applies Loper Bright to Reject Reliance on SEC Definition of Investment Adviser in Enforcement Action

Feb 27 2026

By: Thoreau A. Bartmann, Theodore L. Kornobis, and Varu Chilakamarri

The SEC has long taken the position that the “expectation” of receiving profits can satisfy the “receipt of compensation” element needed to be an investment adviser. In an important new summary order, and one of the first applying Loper Bright to the SEC, the Second Circuit vacated Advisers Act liability after concluding that courts must independently construe the statutory definition of “investment adviser” rather than defer to the SEC’s interpretation. The decision has potential implications whenever the SEC relies on its own interpretations of the securities laws in enforcement proceedings.

United States: It’s Official-The SEC Issues a Revised Enforcement Manual for the First Time in Nearly a Decade

Feb 25 2026

By: Thoreau Bartmann, Theodore Kornobis, and Neil Smith

Understanding the SEC’s Revised Enforcement Manual

Understanding the SEC’s enforcement approach is critical for practitioners and regulated entities alike. One of the few public documents describing how the Division of Enforcement conducts its business is the Enforcement Manual, which provides guidance to staff on conducting investigations, engaging with parties, and resolving matters—including the Wells process and cooperation credit.

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: 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 FCA Confirms the Circumstances in Which it May Make Public Announcements About Live Investigations

Aug 01 2025

By: Michael E. Ruck, Rosie Naylor, Jordan Hawthorne, and Laura Scott

We discussed in an earlier blog that the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority has axed proposed “name and shame” rules, retaining only an ability to make a public announcement about an investigation in “exceptional circumstances”. It has now published a revised Enforcement Guide which also details three specific circumstances in which it may make an announcement:

Australia: Preparing for Australia’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing ACT 2006: What Tranche 2 Entities Need to Know

Jul 02 2025

By: Jim Bulling, Alex Parker, and Madison Jeffreys

In preparation for the changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (AML Act) which are due to commence on 1 July 2026, “tranche 2” entities including lawyers, accountants and real estate agents will need to make some significant changes to their business processes to ensure they comply with the new requirements.

Asia: MAS Consults on Retail Access to Private Market Investment Funds

Apr 28 2025

By: Edward Bennett and Anu L. Jose

On 27 March 2025, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued a consultation paper on a proposed regulatory framework to allow retail investors to access private market investments through authorised long-term investment funds (LIFs).

Category:Regulatory Enforcement and Litigation