The New York Department of Financial Services ("DFS") and Standard Chartered Bank ("SCB") have reached an agreement to settle claims that SCB's NY branch had violated AML obligations. The settlement stipulates that: (1) SCB will pay a civil penalty to DFS; (2) SCB will install a monitor who will evaluate SCB NY's money-laundering risk controls, and DFS examiners will be placed on site at SCB; and (3) SCB will permanently install personnel within its NY branch to oversee SCB's offshore money-laundering due diligence and monitoring. As a result of the settlement, the parties canceled a hearing

The staff of the Division of Market Oversight issued a no-action letter providing that, for a limited time, market participants can rely on the trade option exemption in CFTC Regulation 32.3, which the CFTC had proposed to rescind, rather than complying with requirements relating to swaps. The relief is fairly limited in that there are very significant conditions to compliance with Regulation 32.3, including that the offeree be a "commercial" and that the option be physically settled. The no-action letter cites a variety of questions asked by the CFTC in its recent joint release with the SEC

Julie Williams, Chief Counsel of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, announced this week that she will step down on September 30, 2012 and plans to retire from federal service at the end of the year. While the OCC conducts its search for its next Chief Counsel, Deputy Chief Counsel Daniel P. Stipano will serve as acting Chief Counsel from October 1 through the end of the year, and Deputy Chief Counsel Karen Solomon will serve from January 1 through March 31. Cross-Reference(s): Dodd-Frank Act. View in full here (links externally to OCC website).

The Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee issued a release praising Republicans for passing the JOBS Act. [Lofchie Comment: From a statutory history perspective, the press release is mildly interesting because it refers to a number of smaller, somewhat unrelated bills which were eventually smooshed together into the Jobs Act.] Cross Reference(s): JOBS Act; JOBS Act Section Summaries; Exchange Act Blacklines (showing JOBS Act statutory amendments); Securities Act Blacklines (showing JOBS Act statutory amendments). View release in full here (links externally House Financial

The MSRB is requesting comment on draft amendments to MSRB Rule G-37 (on political contributions and prohibitions on municipal securities business) and MSRB Rule G-8 (on books and records to be made by dealers). The draft amendments would require public disclosures of additional information related to broker, dealer and municipal securities dealer contributions to bond ballot campaigns. Comments should be submitted no later than September 17, 2012. [Lofchie Comment: We note a dramatic uptick in regulatory attention to the municipal securities markets, including a recent major SEC Report on the