Victims of Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme have reacted angrily to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision not to fire any employee over the agency’s failure to stop the massive fraud. “It’s pouring salt in the wound,” said investor Stephanie Halio. “I think it’s pathetic.” The penalties the agency meted out — including pay cuts, demotions, counseling and suspensions of up to 30 days — are “pitifully too little, too late,” Halio said. Read full article > >

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Madoff victims enraged at SEC’s decision to keep employees who failed to stop fraud

Insider trading is illegal — except for members of Congress. A Wall Street executive who buys or sells stock based on insider information would face a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and quite possibly a federal prosecutor. But senators and congressmen are free to legally trade stock based on nonpublic information they have obtained through their official positions as elected officials — and they do so on a regular basis. Read full article > >

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Crony capitalism exposed

The Securities and Exchange Commission , which failed to stop Bernard Madoff’s long-running investment fraud despite repeated warnings , has disciplined eight agency employees over their handling of the matter but did not fire anyone, according to a SEC spokesman. A ninth employee, who was facing a potential seven-day suspension, resigned before disciplinary action was taken, spokesman John Nester said. Read full article > >

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Eight SEC employees disciplined on failure to stop Madoff fraud

Shares in Olympus plunge 30% after it admits to using funds form past acquisitions to hide losses on securities investments.

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Olympus admits to hiding losses

The Securities and Exchange Commission adopted a new set of disclosure rules for hedge funds, private equity funds and other private money managers Wednesday, but it backed off on several of the tougher requirements it had originally proposed. The agency also exempted many firms from the new rules, saying they will apply only to those with at least $150 million under management. Read full article > >

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SEC waters down, adopts disclosure rules for money managers

At first blush, a proposal the Securities and Exchange Commission took up Wednesday appeared to be one of the more mundane chores the agency faces as it carries out a congressionally mandated overhaul of Wall Street rules . An SEC commissioner apologized for the boredom factor, saying, “I know this sounds dry . . . ” Read full article > >

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SEC reviews proposal regulating derivatives called ‘swaps’

To buy long-term Treasury securities.

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Fed Launches $400B ‘Operation Twist’

The Federal Reserve is shifting $400 billion from short- to long-term Treasury securities to push interest rates down and encourage companies to borrow and spend.

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Fed Moves to Push Down Long-Term Rates

The inspector general at the Securities and Exchange Commission has recommended that the Justice Department examine whether to prosecute former SEC general counsel David M. Becker for helping shape the agency’s policy toward victims of Bernard L. Madoff’s investment fraud while having a personal stake in the matter . Read full article > >

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SEC’s IG recommends review of counsel’s role in Madoff victims policy

The conflict-of-interest case involving David M. Becker, the former general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission, is being referred to the Department of Justice for a possible criminal investigation.

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S.E.C. Refers Ex-Counsel’s Actions on Madoff to Justice Dept.

Under intense scrutiny from congressional critics and a probing inspector general, current and former Securities and Exchange Commission officials have been lawyering up, sometimes at their own expense. The practice reflects the highly charged atmosphere at the SEC and one of the costs of government service when investigations can put careers, reputations and more on the line. Read full article > >

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SEC officials ‘lawyering up’

Carlyle Group filed documents with federal regulators to take itself public, peeling away the cover on the inner financial workings at the intensely private investment giant for the first time. The District-based powerhouse, which manages approximately $150 billion in assets, filed a 400-page document with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission in preparation for a $100 million initial public offering. The document does not say where the company will sell its shares or when. But Tuesday’s filing puts the process for selling stock in motion. The initial offering could be at least six months away, or more, and could take place in far different economic conditions. Read full article > >

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Carlyle Group files SEC documents so it can go public

When the Securities and Exchange Commission was accused last year of improperly destroying records , in particular those related to certain initial inquiries into possible wrongdoing, the agency responded with a reassuring letter. In a response to the National Archives , which oversees the preservation of federal records, the SEC said its enforcement division was “not aware of any specific instances” in which it destroyed records of cases that it deemed unworthy of full-blown investigation. But earlier, unsent drafts of the SEC’s Aug. 27, 2010, letter told a different story about the handling of records, which has come under investigation by the SEC’s inspector general. Read full article > >

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A different story emerges on SEC record purges

Sino-Forest Corporation’s CEO Allen Chan resigns amid allegations of an accounting fraud by the Ontario Securities Commission.

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Sino-Forest CEO Allen Chan quits

A former Moody’s analyst has been ordered to pay $34.6 million for his role in an insider trading scheme, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Wednesday. Deep Shah was charged in 2009 with participating in a scheme that included Galleon Management and its founder, hedge fund billionaire Raj Rajaratnam. Shah allegedly provided confidential information about corporate acquisitions, including Blackstone Group’s 2007 purchase of Hilton Hotels. Shah is believed to be in India and has not responded to the SEC’s civil complaint, the agency said. A federal judge issued a default judgment against him Tuesday. The $34.6 million includes a penalty of $24.6 million and $8.2 million to cover his ill-gotten gains along with those of others who profited from his tips, the SEC said. Read full article > >

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Fugitive analyst told to pay $34.6 million