Regulation

Four major banks pleaded guilty on Wednesday to trying to manipulate foreign exchange rates and, with two others, were fined nearly $6 billion in another settlement in a global probe into the $5 trillion-a-day market.

BlackRock has pushed back against arguments by the New York Federal Reserve and other regulators that asset managers' securities lending operations may pose major risks to the market.

UK fund management trade body the Investment Association (IA) said on Monday it would lobby Britain's government to stay in the European Union (EU), as the newly elected Conservative party gears up for a 2017 referendum on membership.

Sections of the U.S. financial system that may be vulnerable to investor panic are raising concerns inside the Federal Reserve, as policymakers preparing for the first interest-rate hike in nearly a decade seek to ensure that the market is ready and able to handle it whenever it happens.

The five years it took regulators to bring high-profile charges against a UK trader underscore how hard it is to spot wrongdoing in fast-developing markets, and may herald problems in detecting future mishaps.

A recent court ruling in Minnesota has put an end to the Ponzi Scheme Presumption --that is, that lenders should not profit from loans made to Ponzi schemes. Steve G. Stevanovich and Tobias S. Keller explain.

A top regulator on Tuesday said the Securities and Exchange Commission will bring more enforcement actions against companies selling complex securities and risky structured products to retail investors.

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer stated in a speech on Friday that hedge funds should be subject to greater scrutiny by federal regulators. 

Funds that mimic strategies used by active managers for a fraction of the cost could be forced to carry a health warning by regulators who are concerned they may pose greater risks than are being disclosed.

The Hedge Fund Standards Board is proposing changes to its Standards to improve disclosure of conflicts of interest to investors.

The proposed changes also seek to strengthen internal compliance procedures to mitigate conflicts of interest.