Representatives Stivers, Moore Write to SEC on MA Definition

On May 10, Representatives Steve Stivers (R – Ohio) and Gwen Moore (D – Wisc.) sent a letter to SEC Chairman Mary Jo White on the pending municipal advisor rule. Reps. Stivers and Moore urge the SEC to adopt a final advisor rule that is consistent with Congress' intent when Dodd-Frank was enacted and that focuses on previously unregulated financial advisors. They also reference their currently pending legislation (H.R. 797) that is identical to the advisor bill that passed the House unanimously last year.

Municipal Bonds - Risky Business?

On May 7, SIFMA’s Michael Decker took to our blog, Pennsylvania + Wall, to address recent concerns about low market yields and the fear of rising interest rates. He reminded investors of the fact that issuers of municipal bonds have an outstanding record of meeting interest and principal payments in a timely manner.  The long-term default rate for rated, investment-grade municipal securities is 0.15%.  Unless the credit picture for state and local governments changes dramatically in an unexpected and fundamental way, investors who hold their bonds to maturity have a very high likelihood of seeing their investment perform just as expected.  However, a concern with any fixed-income instrument is the effect of rising interest rates on market value. Investors should consider duration risk when examining investment alternatives.

HFSC Hearing entitled, Oversight of the SEC’s Agenda, Operations, and FY 2014 Budget Request

Thursday, May 16, 2013

10:00 a.m.

2128 Rayburn House Office Building

Full Committee

Click here for the Full Committee Memorandum.

Witness List

• The Honorable Mary Jo White, Chairman, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Events

SIFMA Municipal Securities Regulation Seminar – June 5 , San Francisco

SIFMA will travel to San Francisco for presentation a by MSRB Regulation staff of their most-pressing rulemaking initiatives, including: duties of underwriters to issuers; retail order periods; bond ballot initiatives and Rule G-37; and more. The program will also include FINRA and the IRS on municipal securities compliance and enforcement matters. Register now!

SIFMA Collateral Conference: Perspectives from Buy-Side & Sell-Side - May 21,  NYC

SIFMA and SIFMA’s Asset Management Group are pleased to announce that John McPartland, Senior Policy Advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, will be the keynote speaker at the 2013 Collateral Conference on Tuesday, May 21. Join thought leaders representing the buy-side and sell-side, regulators, and industry executives for a comprehensive overview of new collateral requirements across multiple asset classes resulting from changing global regulations. SIFMA is pleased to offer a discounted rate when you join us for the Collateral Conference and the Asset Management Derivatives Conference, which will be held the following day on Wednesday, May 22.

SIFMA Asset Management Derivatives Conference 2013 – May 22 , NYC

Prominent speakers from asset management firms as well as central clearinghouses, FCMs and SEFs, will discuss how asset managers are handling new derivatives regulatory requirements and setting priorities for implementation. The full-day program will include an overview of the new market agreed coupon (MAC) structure for interest rate swaps introduced by the SIFMA Asset Management Group, and will cover important topical issues including cross-border regulatory requirements. Register today and gain insight from all sides of the derivatives market as new regulations begin to go into effect and the new market environment begins to develop.

SIFMA Tech 2013: Exhibit Hall FREE for SIFMA Members - June 18-19 , NYC
For 30 years, SIFMA Tech has brought together several thousand financial service firms, industry leaders, regulators and solution providers for critical updates and expert outlooks on every issue that faces the financial services technologist today. This year, our program includes a special presentation by Ray Kurzweil of Kurzweil Technologies and Google, who the Wall Street Journal calls, the “closest thing to a Thomas Edison of our time.”  Your Exhibit Hall registration – FREE for SIFMA members – grants you access to his remarks as well as 20-minute Learning Labs, featuring expert presentations from Cambridge Semantics, IBM, LSI, Microsoft, SAP, Webroot and more.