SEC Faces Obstacles to Rolling Back Dodd-Frank Rules

Legal objections could slow the commission’s already lengthy amendment process.

Litigation could stymie efforts by the Securities and Exchange Commission to comply with sweeping executive orders intended to roll back financial regulations.

President Donald Trump on Friday took the first step in expunging the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial overhaul act, which he said hinders business and economic growth.

Mr. Trump signed an executive action requiring the U.S. Treasury Department to develop an outline for scaling back financial regulations.

The SEC doesn’t have the authority to revoke Dodd-Frank, which is an act of Congress. Nearly 80% of rules under the law are already implemented. Instead, the commission can offer relief by amending its rules, or granting exemptions—a process that is open to judicial review.

Any legal objections could slow the SEC’s already lengthy amendment process, hindering the agency’s ability to execute the president’s executive order, legal experts and former SEC staff said. read more »

Lloyds apologizes for 'distress' caused by £245m HBOS loan scam

Bank to consider whether businesses conned by Lynden Scourfield and his associates should receive compensation

Lloyds Banking Group has apologised for the impact of the £245m loan scam at HBOS and pledged to examine whether any of the small businesses affected should receive compensation.

The bailed-out bank issued a statement following pressure from MPs and small businesses after the jail sentences totalling more than 47 years handed down last week to former senior HBOS manager Lynden Scourfield and five associates.

Scourfield, who received a sentence of 11 years and three months, pleaded guilty to the scheme, which involved introducing his small business clients to consultant David Mills. Scourfield gave inappropriate loans to struggling businesses, which allowed Mills and his associates to profit from high consultancy fees while the banker was rewarded with foreign cruises and sex parties. read more »

Dodd-Frank reform could increase corruption in developing nations, NGOs fear

The US congress has voted to repeal a provision ensuring transparency in the oil, gas and mining industries – a move that could potentially foster corruption in developing nations.

A resolution to void section 1504 of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, set up in response to the 2008 financial crisis, was narrowly passed last week after a senate vote of 52 to 48.The House of Representatives had also voted earlier to void the legislation. 

Section 1504, which came into force only last year after hitting a series of hurdles, required companies in the extractive industries to report any payments they made to the US or foreign governments to the former’s enforcement agency, the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Its supporters argued that this helped deter corruption, for example by preventing bribes from being disguised as legitimate payments, and forced companies’ tax and other financial affairs out into the open, which made them more likely to comply with the rules. read more »

U.S., NY accuse firm of scamming 9/11 heroes, NFL retirees

A company that advances money to people awaiting settlement payouts was accused by New York and federal regulators of scamming sick responders to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, as well as National Football League retirees with brain injuries.

RD Legal Funding LLC and founder Roni Dersovitz allegedly cheated victims out of millions of dollars by deceiving them about the terms of the advances, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday by the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the office of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. read more »

Peru search home of ex-President Toledo in corruption case

Peruvian authorities say they have searched the house of ex-President Alejandro Toledo in a case involving alleged bribes from a mega construction firm under investigation in a major corruption probe in Brazil.

It's the latest development in a case in Brazil that has caught up dozens of politicians from Latin America in a far-reaching probe.

Claimant to Libyan wealth fund returns to office armed with court ruling

A claimant for the chairmanship of Libya's sovereign wealth fund says he has retaken control of the fund's head office in Tripoli, in a challenge to a U.N.-backed government that tried to sideline him.

The move is the latest step in a long-running feud over the $67 billion Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) that reflects Libya's political turmoil and has complicated prospects for any return to regular management of the fund.

Much of the fund has been frozen under sanctions, though it remains one of Libya's key financial bodies. It has also been involved in high-profile litigation, including cases against Goldman Sachs and Societe Generale. read more »

State of Oklahoma joins EMSA kickbacks lawsuit

Health Care Authority says Medicaid claims are ‘false and not payable

The state of Oklahoma has joined federal prosecutors in a civil lawsuit that names EMSA and its president in a kickback scheme with its former ambulance provider.

The Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office filed a complaint Monday in a Texas federal court seeking to partially intervene in a whistleblower lawsuit initially filed by a former employee of Paramedics Plus LLC, an ambulance services provider that contracted with EMSA. read more »