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Broker-dealers, IAs, credit raters caught in SEC off-channel comms sweep
By 
Kyle Brasseur2023-09-29T15:31:00
A dozen financial services firms were penalized by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as the agency continues its enforcement sweep of recordkeeping violations regarding employee use of off-channel communications for business purposes.
The latest round of fines announced Friday targeted broker-dealers, investment advisers, and credit rating agencies. The largest penalty the SEC assessed was $35 million against Interactive Brokers Corp. and its affiliate Interactive Brokers LLC. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) also fined Interactive Brokers $20 million.
The CFTC did not levy any additional penalties against firms disciplined by the SEC. In previous sweeps, the agencies combined to dish out fines totaling $200 million or more to many of the world’s largest banks, including Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Wells Fargo.
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