The SEC's Office of Inspector General recently released two audit reports on the SEC's Office of Information Technology ("OIT"). The first report, released on March 25th, analyzed the Commission's control over sensitive, nonpublic information exchanged with the SEC and the Financial Stability Oversight Council ("FSOC") and the Office of Financial Research ("OFR"). The report noted deficiencies in how the SEC marks documents based on sensitivity level that are shared with or received from the FSOC or OFR, and provided recommendations to remediate them. The second report, released on March 27th

SIFMA submitted the attached comments to the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance requesting clarification on specific issues impacting the implementation of the Italian Financial Transaction Tax within U.S. markets. In the letter, SIFMA notes that the lack of guidance in certain aspects of the law make it difficult to properly collect the tax, and leaves open the possibility that firms will interpret the law differently. The letter further outlines three critical issues that require immediate clarification: "Confirmation that U.S. markets are considered regulated markets and that

SIFMA submitted the attached comments to the SEC, the Chair of the Nasdaq UTP Plan Operating Committee, and the Nasdaq UTP Plan Administrator on the Nasdaq UTP Plan Amendment for Level 1 Professional Fee Increase. SIFMA asserts the Nasdaq UTP Plan's action is in violation of the SEC's "Governance Amendment" to the UTP Plan in 2005, which was a fundamental component of the SEC's adoption of Regulation NMS. Click here to view letter in full (links externally to SIFMA website).

A new CBOE fee rule change has been announced. Click on the link below to view the SEC notice of the rule change. CBOE: Effective Immediately - Rule Change to Amend the Fees Schedule (See also: Exhibit 5)

The OCC announced that Thomas J. Curry, Comptroller of the Currency, has been named Chairman of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council ("FFIEC") for a two-year term. Mr. Curry succeeds Debbie Matz, Chairman of the National Credit Union Administration ("NCUA"). The FFIEC has also named Daniel K. Tarullo, member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, as its new Vice Chairman for a two-year term. Click here to view announcement in full (links externally to OCC website). For a compilation of recent news items in regard to personnel changes at various regulator and