The CFTC issued its agenda for the upcoming Technology Advisory Committee ("TAC") meeting scheduled for June 3, 2014. According to the agenda, the TAC meeting will focus on a number of issues involving high-frequency trading, the CFTC's surveillance program and swap execution facilities. See: CFTC TAC Meeting Agenda. Related news: Energy Metro Desk Article "Drums along the Potomac" Addresses Perspectives on HFT before the Upcoming TAC Meeting (May 13, 2014); CFTC Technology Advisory Committee to Meet on June 3 (May 13, 2014).

On May 23, 2014, the Ontario Superior Court in Ottawa imposed the first jail sentence under Canada's Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act (CFPOA). Defendant Nazir Karigar, who was convicted in August 2013, was sentenced to three years imprisonment for conspiring to bribe foreign public officials. While working as an agent for Cryptometrics Canada, Karigar attempted to bribe an Indian Cabinet Minister and officials of Air India (a state-owned airline) to win a contract to supply facial recognition software. Karigar was the first individual prosecuted under the CFPOA, which applies to

The House Financial Services Committee will hold a full committee markup on 13 different bills and matters on May 29, 2014. The bills that are under discussion include H.R. 4387 (the "FSOC Transparency and Accountability Act") and H.R. ____, a bill to place a six-month moratorium on the authority of the Financial Stability Oversight Council to make financial stability determinations. Other matters include: H.R. 4697 (the "Small-Cap Access to Capital Act"); H.R. 2629 (the "Fostering Innovation Act of 2013"); H.R. 4564 (the "Equity Crowdfunding Improvement Act of 2014"); H.R. ____, a bill to

The Managed Funds Association ("MFA") and the AIMA submitted a joint comment letter to the CFTC on its swap data reporting rules. In the letter, the MFA and the AIMA responded to certain questions in the CFTC's comment request aimed at improving and refining the swap data reporting regime for the following reporting issues: confirmation data; valuation data; reporting party status change; bespoke swaps; package transactions; reporting collateral information for consistency with EU rules; and alpha swap reporting of any swap that is executed with the intention that it be cleared. See : MFA-AIMA

FINRA published its Quarterly Disciplinary Review Podcast, which reviews specific FINRA rule violations by registered representatives. The review highlights the following disciplinary actions: a violation of ethical standards as per the books and records rules, in which a registered sales assistant falsely guaranteed the authenticity of a customer's signature on multiple wire transfer requests; a violation of ethical standards in discretionary accounts rules, in which a registered representative exercised discretion in two customer accounts without authorization or approval; a violation of