The CFTC is proposing a rule pursuant to its authority under Section 4(c) of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) allowing cooperatives meeting certain conditions to elect not to submit for clearing certain swaps that such cooperatives would otherwise be required to clear in accordance with Section 2(h)(1) of the CEA. Comments Due: August 16, 2012 Cross Reference: Dodd-Frank Title VII. View rule release in full here (links externally to CFTC website).

The SEC is publishing interpretive guidance with respect tosections 3(a)(41) (the definition of “mortgage related security”) and 3(a)(53)(A) (the definition of “small business related security”) of the Exchange Act, in light of section 939(e) of the Dodd-Frank Act. Section 939(e) strikes provisions in sections 3(a)(41) and 3(a)(53)(A) of the Exchange Act that reference credit ratings issued by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (“NRSROs”), and inserts new text that provides that in order to satisfy these definitions a security must meet “standards of credit-worthiness as

HSBC (along with the OCC) was severely criticized in a Senate Report for violations of AML requirements and of OFAC procedures. The principal findings of fact regarding HSBC was that (i) its AML procedures were generally extremely weak; (ii) it did not identify its high risk affiliates (particularly in the Middle East and Mexico) and treat them accordingly; (iii) it overrode its own OFAC procedures; (iv) it provided services to non-U.S. banks that had been linked to terrorist financing; (v) it engaged in overtly suspicious transactions involving U.S. travelers checks that were obtained in

View testimony in full here (links externally to SEC website).

NYSEMKT - Proposed Rule Change Amending Rule 134 - Equities to Shorten the Time Frame for Assigning the Contra Party to Unresolved Account Balances in the Exchanges Online Comparison System (SEC Release) View testimony in full here (links externally to SEC website).