Compliance & Ethics

The Federal Trade Commission has taken enforcement action against Invitation Homes, the country's largest landlord of single-family homes. The FTC alleges that Invitation Homes engaged in a litany of unlawful actions against consumers, including deceiving renters about lease costs, charging undisclosed junk fees, failing to properly inspect homes before move-in, unfairly withholding security deposits, and using unfair eviction practices - even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have charged a total of 12 financial firms, including broker-dealers, investment advisers, and a dually-registered firm, for widespread and longstanding failures to maintain and preserve electronic communications as required by federal laws.

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa, alleging that the financial services giant is using its size and dominance to stifle competition in the debit card market, costing consumers and businesses billions of dollars.

The CFTC announced four separate orders granting awards totaling approximately $4.5 million to a total of seven whistleblowers yesterday. This marks the most whistleblower awards issued by the CFTC in a single day. The awards recognize the critical contributions of whistleblowers who provided information that led to successful enforcement actions by the CFTC and other authorities. The whistleblowers come from a variety of backgrounds, including victims of fraud, market participants, and employees with compliance responsibilities.

At the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE) 23rd Annual Compliance & Ethics Institute, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri delivered a keynote speech underscoring the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) evolving corporate enforcement landscape. Compliance professionals were at the center of her address, emphasizing their critical role in upholding corporate integrity.

Danske Bank, Denmark's largest bank, has reached a settlement with the French National Financial Prosecutor, agreeing to pay €6.33 million to resolve a money laundering investigation linked to its former Estonia branch. This marks the conclusion of France’s judicial probe into the non-resident portfolio (NRP) at the Estonian branch, a scandal that has haunted the bank since 2007. The French investigation was centered around transactions from 2007 to 2014 involving several thousand non-resident customers, primarily from Russia.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today announced charges against Atom Investors LP, a Texas-based registered investment adviser, for violations of federal securities laws related to recordkeeping. The firm failed to maintain and preserve off-channel communications, a key obligation under the SEC's recordkeeping provisions. Despite the serious nature of these violations, the SEC opted not to impose a civil penalty, citing Atom Investors' self-reporting, substantial cooperation, and prompt efforts to remediate the situation.