All articles by Joe Mont – Page 77
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Article
Regulators Publish Latest Thinking on AML Compliance
Image: Financial regulators have just updated their examination manual for anti-money laundering compliance, giving financial firms plenty of holiday reading on how they should structure their AML programs. “The big changes are in areas where things have moved forward: virtual currency, prepaid cards, changes in the SAR rules, aggregation for ...
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Blog
Survey: Directors Uneasy About Risk Strategies
Dec. 16—Many directors are unhappy with their approach to risk oversight and mitigation, frequently feeling out-of-the-loop when it comes to cyber-security threats, according to a new survey by the National Association of Corporate Directors. The survey found that many directors want changes to how risk oversight responsibilities are allocated, with ...
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Blog
American Realty Capital Scrambles Amid Probe
American Realty Capital Properties, reeling from an accounting misstatement disclosed in October, has announced sweeping changes to its management and corporate governance. Most notably, CEO David Kay and Executive Chairman Nick Schorsch have both resigned their duties and stepped down from ARCP’s board of directors. The company is also moving ...
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Blog
New CCO at Northrop Grumman
Image: Northrop Grumman has named Carl Hahn as its new chief compliance officer. Effective Jan. 15, Hahn will succeed Judy Perry Martinez, who will be retiring. He joins the company from IBM, where he most recently served as associate general counsel and compliance officer.
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Blog
Humana Names New Top Accountant
Health insurer Humana has named Cynthia Zipperle as chief accounting officer and controller, effective immediately. Reporting to CFO Brian Kane, she has responsibility for all accounting functions, the establishment and maintenance of internal accounting controls, and enterprise-wide financial reporting to both the Securities and Exchange Commission and state Departments of ...
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Article
It May Be Voluntary, but NIST Framework Is a Crucial Cyber-Security Tool
Each day, it seems another big-name company falls victim to a cyber-attack. The new framework for assessing the security flaws, developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, may be intended for critical-infrastructure companies, but other businesses may find that its guidance offers more help than the mélange of ...
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Blog
Budget Bill Targets Dodd-Frank’s Derivatives Restrictions
Dec. 10—Seeking to avoid another government shutdown, the House has approved the fiscal year 2015 Omnibus Appropriations bill, legislation that will provide discretionary funding for the vast majority of the federal government for the remainder of the current fiscal year. Notable inclusions in the bill—now before the Senate—are a $150 ...
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Blog
Study: Many Businesses Struggle With Anti-Corruption Controls
Image: Dec. 10—Three years after the U.K. Bribery Act came into force, many businesses are still struggling to implement the procedures necessary to prevent corruption as expected by the Ministry of Justice. More than one-third of almost 3,000 anti-corruption controls assessed by GoodCorporation were graded as inadequate in a recent ...
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Blog
Fed Seeks New Capital Requirements for Biggest Banks
Image: Dec. 9—The Federal Reserve is proposing a new risk-based capital surcharge for the most systemically important firms. The proposed rule would implement a new methodology for determining “global systemically important” banks and increase mandated capital conservation buffers by as much as 4 percent. The proposal establishes five broad categories ...
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Article
In 2015, ACA Compliance Will Be an Even Greater Challenge
Image: The Affordable Care Act may be a familiar headache for corporate compliance officers, but even the best-prepared companies can expect fresh pain in 2015. “There are going to be many that find themselves in at least technical non-compliance,” says John Haslinger of ADP. “They thought they understood it, but ...
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Article
Seasonal Employees Can Bring Not-So-Merry Risks
Image: For any company that depends on seasonal workers, don’t overlook the need to give that group compliance training. Even temporary workers need to review the Code of Conduct and have access to the reporting hotline. “There are no exemptions in what constitutes an effective compliance program ... for short-term ...
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Blog
Google Will Pay $19M to Settle FTC Complaints
The Federal Trade Commission has approved a final order resolving allegations that Google unfairly billed consumers for in-app charges that were made by children without their parents’ consent. Google will set aside $19 million in restitution and contact all all affected consumers within 15 days.
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Blog
SEC Sides With Whole Foods in Proxy Access Battle
Image: The SEC has sided with Whole Foods in a closely watched effort to submit its own proxy access proposal at the annual meeting. The move supersedes a proposal sought by activist shareholder Jim McRitchie, who wanted to give proxy access to any group of shareholders that collectively owns at ...
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Blog
SEC Disclosure Simplification Bill Approved in House
Image: A bill intended to help public companies streamline their disclosures has been unanimously approved by the House of Representatives. The Disclosure Modernization and Simplification Act, sponsored by Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.), allows issuers to submit a summary page on annual Form 10-K filings. It also gives the SEC a ...
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Blog
OCC’s Curry Details Regulatory Relief for Small Banks
Image: In a recent speech, Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry floated some regulatory reforms that could make compliance easier for small- and medium-sized banks, including a new examination cycle for healthy banks. “It’s important that they, like other businesses, have the flexibility to adapt to changing economic and ...
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Article
Why Anti-Money Laundering Programs Aren’t Just for Banks Anymore
Image: After years of hunting money launderers by scrutinizing transaction at big banks, regulators are widening their nets to include luxury goods retailers, casinos, technology companies, and others. The Feds are holding more businesses accountable for questionable transactions and pushing those at risk to beef up AML compliance. “All companies, ...
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Blog
CFTC Dives Back into Position Limits, Reopens Comment Period
Image: Dec. 2—The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is once again girding for battle over a controversial plan to impose position limits on futures contracts. On Dec. 3, notice was published in the Federal Register to announce the reopening of a public comment period on rulemaking that was put on hold ...
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Blog
Podcast: Getting a Grip on Legal Entity Compliance
Not only is identifying every party to a financial transaction complex, regulators are paying closer attention to the topic, known as legal entity management. In this week’s podcast, we talk to Ron Jordan, chief data officer for the Depository Trust and Clearing Corp., a post-trade financial services company, about improving ...
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Podcast
Podcast: Getting a Grip on Legal Entity Compliance
Legal entity management, identifying every party to a financial transaction, is far easier said than done for financial institutions. Complex or not, regulators are paying attention and will continue to increase their scrutiny. In this week’s podcast, we talk to Ron Jordan, chief data officer for the Depository Trust and ...
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Blog
U.K. Enacts Disclosure Demands on Oil, Gas Companies
The United Kingdom has agreed to new disclosure requirements for companies that pay governments for extraction rights and access to natural resources. It is the first country to pass legislation enacting European Union directives that require member states to impose new requirements on oil, gas, mining, and lumber companies. A ...