Regulatory actions and programs

There’s a tie that binds the Securities and Exchange Commission’s separate probes of SAC Capital Advisors LP founder Steven A. Cohen and Fabrice Tourre, the former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. vice president.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board posted an updated list of firms Monday that have registered with the PCAOB, but have not yet been inspected, even though four or more years have passed since they issued an audit report while registered.

Internal auditors around the world are bearing the brunt of a quickly changing regulatory landscape, especially in financial services, according to a new survey by Thomson Reuters.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is taking a close look at the nearly 1,000 accounting firms that have registered with the PCAOB even though they do not audit public companies and may decide to drop many of them.

The global consulting firm Protiviti has published a new study on how the internal audit function is changing at companies around the world as internal audit teams collaborate with more parts of the organization while also trying to maintain their independence.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has conducted a review of safety and security procedures for employees traveling abroad in light of recent incidents of violence around the world, such as the killing of four Americans at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, last year.

The Securities and Exchange Commission adopted a new rule Wednesday to implement a JOBS Act requirement to lift the ban on general solicitation or general advertising for certain private securities offerings for business startups, while also adopting rules to discourage fraudsters from touting the investments and to add new protections for investors.

China will for the first time give audit records for a Chinese company to U.S. authorities after regulators reached an agreement in May to allow each other access to companies’ documents.

To address the market demand for training in Extensible Business Reporting Language, or XBRL, the American Institute of CPAs and XBRL US, the nonprofit consortium for XBRL business reporting standards in the U.S., have introduced an XBRL US GAAP Certificate Program.

Only 14 percent of capital markets executives at leading investment banks believe the JOBS Act is having a positive impact on increasing the number of IPOs on U.S. exchanges, according to a new survey by BDO USA.

The House has approved a bill that prohibits the Public Company Accounting and Oversight Board from forcing public companies to automatically change or rotate their independent auditing firms.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s custody rule governing investment advisors’ custody of client assets imposes various requirements and, in turn, costs on investment advisors, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office.

The Financial Planning Coalition submitted a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission saying it would "vigorously oppose" attempts to weaken the fiduciary standard for broker-dealers and submitted research showing a client-first standard does not limit advice to “mass market” clients.

The Government Accountability Office recommended in a new report that the Securities and Exchange Commission should consider requiring public companies where applicable to explicitly disclose whether they obtained an auditor attestation of their internal controls.

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement division is launching three new initiatives to combat financial reporting and microcap fraud and enhance its risk analysis capabilities with the use of sophisticated analytical technology.

The U.S. Small Business Administration has issued four final rules in the Federal Register, increasing the size standards for small businesses in 70 industries, including finance.

Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez, D-N.Y., the ranking Democrat on the House Small Business Committee, has introduced two bills to foster entrepreneurship and help small firms grow and succeed.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a China-based company and its CEO with fraudulently misleading investors about its financial condition by touting cash balances that were millions of dollars higher than actual amounts.

The House Financial Services Committee has unanimously passed legislation prohibiting the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board from mandating the automatic rotation of a public company’s independent external auditor.

The European Commission has extended its cooperation agreement with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, allowing the PCAOB to continue exchanging confidential information with European audit regulators.