Tag: SEC

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Article: Morgan Stanley backs Bitcoin for 12 mutual funds

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Morgan Stanley backs Bitcoin for 12 mutual funds

EXPLICA .CO, 02 April 2021

US investment bank Morgan Stanley has filed an update to its prospectus related to bitcoin (BTC) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institution applied for 12 of its funds to have exposure with the first cryptocurrency.

According to the bank, the funds would have indirect exposure to bitcoin in two ways: through cash-settled futures and through the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), one of the world’s largest trusts focused on digital assets.

On the type of futures that funds can invest in, Morgan Stanley noted: “The only bitcoin futures that a fund can invest in are cash-settled bitcoin futures that are traded on listed futures exchanges. CFTC ‘.

In the document, the bank explains that the Selected funds will be able to invest up to 25% of their assets in bitcoin. The institution also stressed that this type of operation implies a risk of illiquidity since bitcoin futures are not traded so “intensely” because they are relatively new. Continue reading “Article: Morgan Stanley backs Bitcoin for 12 mutual funds”

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Article: SEC Puts Brokers On Notice For Money Laundering Concerns

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SEC Puts Brokers On Notice For Money Laundering Concerns

Al Barbarino, 31 March 2021

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission isn’t satisfied with the way broker-dealers are responding to and reporting suspicious activities, and a wave of enforcement actions could follow if these regulated entities don’t fall in line with the agency’s latest warning on the matter, industry attorneys say.

Redoubling its efforts to keep brokers in check when it comes to their anti-money laundering, or AML, obligations, the agency in a Monday risk alert sought to “remind” the regulated entities of their duties to report suspicious activities tied to penny stocks, unregistered securities and other high-risk transactions that have swelled up amid COVID-19.  Continue reading “Article: SEC Puts Brokers On Notice For Money Laundering Concerns”

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Article:SEC Opens Probe Into Archegos Chaos, Deutsche Bank Confirms ‘Quick Sale’ To Avoid All Losses

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SEC Opens Probe Into Archegos Chaos, Deutsche Bank Confirms ‘Quick Sale’ To Avoid All Losses

TYLER DURDEN, 31 March 2021

As more details from the now infamous debacle surrounding Tiger cub Archegos, whose massive derivative-based exposures spilled out into the open and transformed into the biggest and most painful rolling margin call to hit Wall Street since Lehman, we now know that at least six Prime Brokers scrambled to unwind the biggest hedge fund blowup since LTCM without hammering the overall market.

To “make a living in this business… be first, be smarter, or cheat…”

We previously noted that Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs were the “first” to break ranks and rejected the efforts of Credit Suisse’s emissaries who tried to create consensus to unwind the positions without sparking a panic.

As we now also know, Nomura and Credit Suisse which dithered and were unsure what to do, seeing their stock crushed and their counterparty risk hedge premia explode higher.. Continue reading “Article:SEC Opens Probe Into Archegos Chaos, Deutsche Bank Confirms ‘Quick Sale’ To Avoid All Losses”

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Article: FinCEN’s $390 Million Case Against Capital One – And What It Means For AML Enforcement

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FinCEN’s $390 Million Case Against Capital One – And What It Means For AML Enforcement

Seetha Ramachandran and Hena Vora,  29 March 2021

As the financial services industry prepares for expanded criminal and civil enforcement under the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) with the passage of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020, FinCEN’s recent case against Capital One shows how FinCEN’s approach to AML enforcement is evolving.

On January 15, 2021, FinCEN assessed a $390 million civil money penalties against Capital One for violations of the BSA related to Capital One’s Check Cashing Group (the “CCG”). CCG is a business unit under Capital One’s commercial bank through which Capital One provides banking services including processing checks and providing customers with armored car cash shipments. In issuing its decision, FinCEN determined that, between 2008 and 2014, Capital One’s CCG failed to report millions of dollars in suspicious transactions. Specifically, FinCEN found that Capital One: Continue reading “Article: FinCEN’s $390 Million Case Against Capital One – And What It Means For AML Enforcement”

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Article: Supreme Court to decide whether Goldman Sachs shareholders can bring suit in major fraud case

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Supreme Court to decide whether Goldman Sachs shareholders can bring suit in major fraud case

Tucker Higgins, 28 March 2021

The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments from Goldman Sachs in a long-running case that could have major implications for shareholders seeking to bring securities-fraud lawsuits.

Arguments are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. ET Monday and will be streamed live as the court continues to meet remotely as a precaution against Covid-19.

The case, which dates to the Great Recession, concerns statements that the investment bank made while it was marketing “Abacus,” an investment known as a synthetic collateralized debt obligation. Continue reading “Article: Supreme Court to decide whether Goldman Sachs shareholders can bring suit in major fraud case”

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Article: SEC is investigating Japanese investment giant SoftBank for market manipulation

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SEC is investigating Japanese investment giant SoftBank for market manipulation

DUNCAN RILEY, 25 March 2021

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating Japanese telecommunications company and investment giant SoftBank Group Corp. for alleged market manipulation.

Founded in 1981, SoftBank holds a significant share — 21.2% as of 2020 of Japan’s mobile phone subscription market — but is best known in the W est for its prolific investment portfolio. The list of companies SoftBank has invested in is too long to list but notable names include Uber Technologies Inc., Didi Chuxing Co. Ltd., Grab Holdings Inc., Nvidia Corp., TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. and DoorDash Inc.

Along with operating the world’s largest technology-focused venture capital fund, Softbank has a particular interest in ride-hailing companies. Except for Lyft Inc., SoftBank owns significant minority stakes in just about every other company in the market. When Grab purchased Uber’s Southeast Asian arm in 2018, it was a deal between two SoftBank-funded companies. Continue reading “Article: SEC is investigating Japanese investment giant SoftBank for market manipulation”

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Article: Farmmi Closes $7.4 Million Underwritten Public Offering of Ordinary Shares

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Farmmi Closes $7.4 Million Underwritten Public Offering of Ordinary Shares

PRNewswire, 24 March 2021

Farmmi, Inc. (“Farmmi” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: FAMI), an agriculture products supplier in China, today announced the closing of an underwritten public offering of 6,469,467 ordinary shares of the Company, at a price to the public of $1.15 per share. In addition, the Company has granted the underwriter an option to purchase an additional 15 percent of the ordinary shares offered in the public offering solely to cover over-allotments, if any, exercisable for 25 days, after the closing of this offering, which would bring total gross proceeds to approximately $8.6 million. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate and working capital needs.

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Article: Farmmi, Inc. (FAMI)

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Farmmi, Inc. (FAMI)

Seeking Alpha, 24 March 2021

On March 22, 2021, Farmmi, Inc., a Cayman Islands corporation (the “Company”), entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Aegis Capital Corp. (the “Underwriter”), pursuant to which the Company agreed to sell to the Underwriter, in a firm commitment public offering (the “Offering”), 6,469,467 ordinary shares (the “Shares”) of the Company, par value $0.001 per share for a public offering price of $1.15 per share. The Company expects to receive approximately $6.7 million in net proceeds from the Offering after deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company also granted the Underwriter an option for a period of 25 days to purchase an additional 970,419 ordinary shares solely to cover over-allotments.

In connection with the closing of the Offering on March 24, 2021, the Company issued a press release titled: “Farmmi Closes $7.4 Million Underwritten Public Offering of Ordinary Shares.” A copy of the press release is furnished herewith as Exhibit 99.3.

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Article: SEC Confirms Probe of SoftBank

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SEC Confirms Probe of SoftBank

Michelle Celarier, 24 March 2021

SoftBank is the subject of an active investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to PlainSite, a legal transparency initiative.

The research provider on Wednesday shared the SEC’s response to a Freedom of Information Act request by Aaron Greenspan, the founder of PlainSite, a joint venture of Think Computer Corporation and Think Computer Foundation.

Greenspan said the SEC probe appears to be related to SoftBank’s trading unit, SB Northstar. He told Institutional Investor that news last year about SoftBank’s options trading triggered his initial FOIA request, which was dated December 2, 2020. Continue reading “Article: SEC Confirms Probe of SoftBank”

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Article: Form 8-K American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.

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Form 8-K American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.

EDGAR AGENTS LLC, 23 March 2021

On March 22, 2021, American Acquisition Opportunity Inc. (the “Registrant”) consummated its initial public offering (the “IPO”) of 10,000,000 units (the “Units”), each Unit consisting of one share of common stock of the Registrant, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”) and one-half of one redeemable warrant (“Warrant”), each whole Warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase one share of Common Stock for $11.50 per share. The Units were sold at a price of $10.00 per Unit, generating aggregate gross proceeds to the Registrant of $100,000,000.

In connection with the IPO, the Registrant entered into the following agreements, forms of which were previously filed as exhibits to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-252751) related to the IPO, originally filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on February 5, 2021 (as amended, the “Registration Statement”): Continue reading “Article: Form 8-K American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.”

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Article: American Acquisition Opportunity Inc – Units (1 Ord Class A & 1/2 War) (AMAOU)

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American Acquisition Opportunity Inc – Units (1 Ord Class A & 1/2 War) (AMAOU)

Seeking Alpha, 23 March 2021

An Underwriting Agreement, dated March 17, 2021 by and between the Registrant and Kingswood Capital Markets, division of Benchmark Securities, Inc., a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 1.1 hereto and incorporated herein by reference.

A Warrant Agreement, dated March 17, 2021, by and between the Registrant and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC as warrant agent, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 4.1 hereto and incorporated herein by reference. Continue reading “Article: American Acquisition Opportunity Inc – Units (1 Ord Class A & 1/2 War) (AMAOU)”

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Article: Market Manipulation: Alberta Securities Commission clamps down on pump and dump scheme

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Market Manipulation: Alberta Securities Commission clamps down on pump and dump scheme

Lawrence E. Ritchie, Tristram Mallett, Devon Luca, 23 March 2021

The Alberta Securities Commission (the “ASC”) recently issued its reasons in Re Kilimanjaro Capital Ltd., 2021 ABASC 14 (the “Decision”). The ASC concluded the control person of Kilimanjaro Capital Ltd. (“Kilimanjaro”), Ashmit Patel, engaged in, among other things, market manipulating conduct intended artificially to inflate Kilimanjaro’s share price so that he could profit.

The Decision highlights the extensive cross-border cooperation between the United States Security and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and Canadian Securities Administrators (“CSAs”). The Decision also strengthens the existing legal framework relating to misleading promotional materials. As we have written previously, regulators are grappling with how to regulate an evolving market in which information posted on social media can significantly influence market valuations. The Decision lays useful groundwork that can be used to regulate legitimate trading practices used for improper purposes.

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Article: Farmmi Prices $7.4 Million Underwritten Public Offering of Ordinary Shares

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Farmmi Prices $7.4 Million Underwritten Public Offering of Ordinary Shares

PRNewswire, 22 March 2021

Farmmi, Inc. (“Farmmi” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: FAMI), an agriculture products supplier in China, today announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 6,469,467 ordinary shares of the Company, at a price to the public of $1.15 per share. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on March 24, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions. In addition, the Company has granted the underwriter an option to purchase an additional 15 percent of the ordinary shares offered in the public offering solely to cover over-allotments, if any, exercisable for 25 days, after the closing of this offering, which would bring total gross proceeds to approximately $8.6 million. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate and working capital needs.

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Article: Form 424B4 American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.

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Form 424B4 American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.

EDGAR AGENTS LLC, 22 March 2021

American Acquisition Opportunity Inc. is a newly organized blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to as our initial business combination throughout this prospectus. We have not selected any specific business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any business combination target. While we may pursue an initial business combination target in any business or industry or geographic location, we intend to focus our search on land and resource holding companies. Continue reading “Article: Form 424B4 American Acquisition Opportunity Inc.”

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