Good afternoon, Subscribers! We hope you have had a productive, and above all a healthy week.
This week in APAC headlines, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) have released guidelines for the use of generative artificial intelligence in consumer-facing applications, while issuing a warning to the public about phishing scams involving fraudulent instant messages that claim to be from the Bank of China. Additionally, China's supreme court and public prosecutor have revised their interpretation of the country's Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws to recognise "virtual asset" transactions for the first time.
In news out of the United States, the SEC asserted its legal authority to mandate climate-related disclosure rules, in a court filing that responds to multiple lawsuits which have prompted the regulator to temporarily suspend the implementation of these requirements. On a related note, the SEC approved a rule change from the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board that lowers the liability standard, allowing the audit watchdog to hold individuals, such as audit firm employees, partners, and independent contractors, responsible for violations through a negligence standard rather than the previous higher bar of recklessness.
In EMEA headlines, German financial regulator BaFin have ordered the Swiss asset manager Meier + Partner to immediately cease its unauthorised investment brokerage and advisory activities, while the United Kingdom's FCA have imposed a £15m (USD$19.3m / HKD$153.29m) fine on a prominent global consulting firm, citing the their failure to report suspicions of fraudulent activities at the investment group London Capital & Finance.
In news out of Australia, ASIC reported that it has shut down 615 cryptocurrency investment scam websites as part of a program to address fraudulent investment platforms, which accounts for approximately 9% of the 7,300 phishing and investment scam websites identified by the regulator, noting that retail investors lost A$1.3b (USD$870m / HKD$6.78b) to investment scams in the previous year.
As always, please feel free to reach out to us for updates on Live Jobs, Movers and Shakers, and Market Intelligence.
Movers and Shakers
TMX Group - Shu Li, Senior Risk Specialist, Enterprise Risk Management, internally promoted. (Toronto)
TD - Stuart Davis, Advisor to Chief Risk Officer, from Scotiabank. (Toronto)
TD - Nathalie Martineau, Vice President, AML Governance and Controls, Canada, Europe and Asia-Pacific, from FINTRAC Canada. (Toronto)
News of the Week
APAC
Hong Kong issues generative AI guidelines for consumer protection.
Hong Kong Monetary Authority task force to help SMEs struggling to repay loans.
HKMA Warns Public of Phishing Scams Impersonating Bank of China (Hong Kong).
Hong Kong police arrest 7 for alleged links to transnational money-laundering syndicate.
HKMA vows to act as banks tighten screws.
Hong Kong Securities And Futures Commission, Independent Commission Against Corruption And Macao Judiciary Police Conduct Joint Operation Against Suspected Cross-Boundary Fraud And Misconduct In Listed Company.
Tech support scam: Singaporean arrested in Hong Kong money laundering bust in joint operation by police and Interpol.
China targets cryptocurrencies, online game coins in intensified money-laundering crackdown.
China supreme court revises Anti-Money Laundering law to include ‘virtual assets’.
China jails another former football official over bribery.
Bank cards seized, 3 arrested in Hong Kong police operation targeting alleged money-laundering.
Americas
SEC Charges Transfer Agent Equiniti Trust Co. with Failing to Protect Client Funds Against Cyber Intrusions.
Chinese National Sentenced To 17 Months For Money Laundering.
New York’s financial regulator seeks digital currency, AI expert for policy unit.
Wall Street regulator approves tougher rules for accounting ‘negligence’.
‘The banks have won’: Fed, regulators at impasse over capital rule overhaul.
New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez resigns after bribery convictions.
Ex-Energy Trader for Vitol Pleads Guilty to Second International Bribery Scheme.
New SEC cybersecurity compliance and disclosure interpretations put focus on materiality assessments.
SEC tells court it has authority to impose US climate disclosure rules.
SEC Approves New and Updated PCAOB Audit Standards and an Amendment to the PCAOB’s Contributory Liability Rule.
US lags on financial transparency compared to other developed nations, researchers say.
SEC Charges Carl Icahn and Icahn Enterprises L.P. for Failing to Disclose Pledges of Company’s Securities as Collateral for Billions in Personal Loans.
SEC Adopts Rule to Update Definition of Qualifying Venture Capital Funds.
US Treasury criticised for ‘substantially’ underestimating new bank account compliance burden.
EMEA
Germany seizes almost $28 million in cash in crypto ATM sting.
BaFin Reprimands Swiss Asset Manager.
U.K. Regulator Fines PricewaterhouseCoopers Over London Capital & Finance Audit.
Aus&Nz
Online investment trading scams top ASIC’s website takedown action.
Australia's Financial Regulator Cancels Libertas Financial Planning License.
Australia's Financial Regulator Warns of Ongoing Crypto Scams Despite Monthly Decline Since April.
Australian Securities Regulator Nabbed More Than 600 Crypto Investment Scams in a Year.