Sifma : News on the capital markets, securities and financial industry

• Prosecutors intensify investigation of S&P
  U.S. prosecutors are moving faster in their investigation into possible misconduct by credit rating agency Standard & Poor's in the marketing of mortgage-backed securities. Investigators are trying to find out whether firms selling the securities pressured analysts to weaken standards normally used to rate bonds backed by mortgages. The Wall Street Journal(1/17)
• Expert offers insight into financial pay practices
  Alan Johnson, a financial compensation specialist, helps determine how financial companies pay employees. "The misunderstanding many people have about this industry is that pay is whimsical," Johnson said "It’s not." The New York Times (tiered subscription model)(1/16)
• Other News
• Morgan Stanley to notify employees of shrinking bonuses
  The Wall Street Journal (1/17)

Washington Roundup

• Proposed U.S. rules will hit securitizations, insiders say
  U.S. regulators recently published draft trading book capital rules that banks say are insensitive to risk. The rules would subject the industry to capital requirements on securitizations and other assets that are significantly higher than required under global rules known as Basel 2.5. Risk.net (subscription required)(1/12)
• Lawmakers will question regulators about Volcker rule
  House members on Wednesday will question regulators about plans to implement the Volcker rule. "From the beginning there have been serious concerns that this complex regulation will hinder American markets, competitiveness and job creation," said Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala. Oliver Wyman recently released a studyon the implications of the Volcker rule on the U.S. corporate bond market. The Hill/On the Money blog(1/16)
• Fiduciary duty debate turns to cost-benefit analyses
  Efforts by the Labor Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to impose fiduciary standards on investment advisers have slowed in recent months. Conducting cost-benefit analyses of the proposed fiduciary duties has been difficult. InvestmentNews (free registration)(1/16)
• IRS looks into possible mispricing in muni market
  Officials at the Internal Revenue Service want to work with municipal bond market participants to develop policies to prevent mispricing schemes and detect possible problems. The IRS is also monitoring data from the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board to detect suspicious pricing. The Bond Buyer (free content)(1/17)