The SEC is proposing two alternatives for amending rules that govern money market mutual funds pursuant toRule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act. The release provides a substantial discussion of the role of money market funds in the 2008 financial crisis, as well as some discussion of prior and subsequent valuation and liquidity problems experienced by money market funds. According to the SEC, the two alternatives proposed by the SEC are designed to address money market funds' susceptibility to heavy redemptions, improve their ability to manage and mitigate potential contagion from such

In a speech at the SIFMA Tech Conference, Associate Director Berman discussed how the Flash Crash of May 5, 2010, motivated the SEC to initiate the MIDAS project. After significant input from vendors, MIDAS was designed to enable the SEC to readily collect and analyze all trade and quota data from the public tapes for equities. Berman further explained that the potential uses of MIDAS are numerous but can be broken down generally into three categories: Real-time monitoring of market activities; Forensic analysis of market events; and Market structure research that can more fully inform

Randy Snook, executive vice president of business policy and practices at SIFMA, delivered the opening remarks for the SIFMA's Tech 2013 event. In his speech, Snook discussed the role technology has played and will continue to play as the halfway mark has passed for Dodd-Frank implementation. He observed the shift that firms have taken toward risk management, and labels technology "the enabling force for all of the various processes and functions that keep the financial system running." Mr. Snook further relayed SIFMA's support of a consolidated audit trail ("CAT"), which he believes has the

SIFMA filed the attached 19(d) application with the SEC for review of action taken by certain SROs with regard to raising fees for, or limiting access to, market data. Click here to view SIFMA's 19(d) application in full.

The National Futures Association ("NFA") and TeraExchange announced that they have entered into an agreement that sets the foundation for the NFA to perform regulatory services for TeraExchange's swap execution facility ("SEF"). Under the Dodd-Frank Act and regulations promulgated thereunder, a SEF will have surveillance and other self-regulatory responsibilities, which the SEF is able to outsource, at least in part, to another self-regulatory organization, such as the NFA. The agreement establishes a preliminary framework for the exchange of information and the development of technology