Sara Crovitz

Sara Crovitz, most recently Deputy Chief Counsel and Associate Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Investment Management, provides counsel on all aspects of investment company and investment adviser regulation. She worked at the SEC for 21 years, including 17 years in the Division of Investment Management focusing on issues under the Investment Company and Investment Advisers Acts of 1940. While in the Division, Sara supervised the provision of significant legal guidance to the investment management industry through no-action and interpretive letters, exemptive applications, IM guidance updates and other written and oral means.

“Fat-Free” ESG: SEC Proposes Rule Changes Related to Fund Names and Fund and Adviser Disclosure Related to ESG Investment Strategies

Introduction

On May 25, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in 3-1 votes, proposed (1) amendments to Rule 35d-1 (the Names Rule) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the Names Rule Proposal) and (2) disclosure requirements for registered investment funds and investment advisers related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment strategies (the ESG Proposal). The Names Rule Proposal would expand the scope of terms subject to the Names Rule to include those that suggest that a fund focuses on investments that have, or investments whose issuers have, particular characteristics, would set limitations on the ability of a fund to depart from its investment policy under the Names Rule, and would modify certain other requirements of the Rule. The ESG Proposal mandates certain prospectus and/or annual report disclosure for investment companies and Form ADV disclosure for investment advisers that consider ESG as a part of their investment process. The SEC generally proposes a one-year transition period to come into compliance with the rules if adopted. Public comments on the Names Rule Proposal and the ESG Proposal must be received 60 days after publication of each Proposal in the Federal Register. Full article…

SEC Adopts Universal Proxy and Proposes to Rescind Certain 2020 Proxy Solicitation Rules

By: Sara P. Crovitz and Wesley Davis

Introduction
On Nov. 17, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted amendments to proxy voting rules (Final Rule) to require the use of a universal proxy card in contested director elections. The universal proxy card must include all registrant and dissident director nominees in non-exempt director elections, allowing shareholders to vote on each nominee rather than an entire slate of directors.1 In a separate rulemaking, the SEC proposed amendments (Proposed Amendments) to proxy voting rules that generally would rescind certain 2020 rules governing advice provided by proxy voting advisors.2

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The Final Rule does not apply to the director elections of investment companies or business development companies.

• The Final Rule is expected to make it easier for activist investors to win at least some board seats as the process to put dissident directors on the proxy card will be cheaper and more efficient.

• The Final Rule will become effective for any shareholder meeting held after Aug. 31, 2022.

• While the Proposed Amendments would rescind requirements that proxy voting advisors provide issuers an opportunity to comment on and provide their clients (e.g., investment advisers) with a mechanism by which the clients can reasonably be expected to become aware of any comments by public companies that are the subject of the advice, the largest proxy voting advisors have voluntarily provided similar opportunities and may continue to do so.3  This issue has become highly politicized and could be reversed again in a future administration.4

• The Proposed Amendments request comment on whether SEC guidance issued in conjunction with the 2020 Rules – which suggested how investment advisers should consider public company comments received through proxy voting advisor’s mechanisms – should also be reconsidered or rescinded.


Universal Proxy

  • General. For years, shareholders and their advocates have expressed concerns about being unable to choose a mix of dissident and registrant nominees when voting on contested director elections by proxy. To address the difference in voting opportunities between voting in person versus via proxy, new Rule 14a-19 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (34 Act) includes a mandatory requirement to use a universal proxy card that includes the names of all director nominees from both the registrant and dissident(s) in a contested election. The universal proxy card will permit shareholders to vote for or against individual directors, rather than the current practice of having to choose between the registrant’s and dissident’s slates of directors.5
  • Minimum Solicitation Requirement. For dissident nominees to be listed on a universal proxy card, the dissident must indicate its intent to meet the minimum solicitation requirement when notifying a registrant of its nominees. The dissident must also solicit shareholders representing at least 67% of the voting power of shares entitled to vote in the election.6
  • Notice and Filing Requirements. The Final Rule adopts, as proposed, the requirement that a dissident provide the registrant with names of nominees for whom it intends to solicit proxies at least 60 calendar days before the anniversary of the previous year’s annual meeting date.7  Dissidents also must comply with advance notice requirements included in the registrant’s bylaws, which may be longer. Registrants will be required to notify dissidents of their nominees no later than 50 days before the anniversary of the previous year’s annual meeting date.8  Both a registrant and dissident’s proxy statement “must direct shareholders to the opposing side’s proxy statement for information about that participant’s nominees” rather than including such information in its proxy statement.9
  • Universal Proxy Presentation and Formatting Requirements. The Final Rule includes universal proxy card formatting and presentation requirements meant to avoid shareholder confusion and to “ensure that each side’s nominees are grouped together and clearly identified as such and presented in a fair and impartial manner.”10
  • Additional Amendments for All Director Elections. Additional amendments to the form of proxy and disclosure requirements apply to all director elections, not only those that are contested. Unlike the universal proxy voting requirements, these amendments also apply to registered investment companies and business development companies.11  These amendments mandate that a form of proxy for the election of directors include an “against” voting option in lieu of a “withhold authority to vote” option where permitted by state law.12  They also provide shareholders with the “opportunity to ‘abstain’ in a director election governed by a majority voting standard.”13

Proxy Solicitation Rules

  • General. The Proposed Amendments would rescind certain final rules regarding proxy voting advice under the 34 Act that the SEC adopted in the 2020 Rules. The Proposed Amendments were adopted by a vote of 3-2, with Republican Commissioners Peirce and Roisman dissenting. Comments on the Proposed Amendments will be due thirty days after their publication in the Federal Register.
  • Proposed Amendments to Rule 14a-2(b)(9). The 2020 Rules added conditions that proxy voting advisors must meet in order to take advantage of exemptions from certain solicitor information and filing requirements. The Proposed Rules would retain conflicts of interest disclosure requirements, and proxy voting advice would remain a solicitation subject to the federal proxy rules. Additional conditions (and related safe harbor and exclusions) would be deleted under the Proposed Amendments. In particular, proxy voting advisors no longer will be required to make their advice available to the public companies on which they are providing advice at or before the time that they provide such advice to their clients or to provide a mechanism by which their clients could reasonably be expected to become aware of any written statements by public companies regarding their proxy voting advice in a timely manner and before the relevant shareholder meeting.14
  • Proposed Amendment to Rule 14a-9. A proxy voting advisor’s proxy voting advice generally constitutes a solicitation, according to the SEC, and such advice is prohibited from “containing any statement which, at the time and in the light of the circumstances under which it is made, is false or misleading with respect to any material fact.”15  Note (e) of Rule 14a-9 provides examples of material misstatements related to proxy voting advice. This note would be deleted under the Proposed Amendments, based on concerns that liability could extend to mere differences of opinion with public companies regarding proxy voting advisor’s advice. Such liability concerns could impair the independence of the advice that proxy voting advisors provide because it could lead to public companies threatening litigation against proxy voting advisors in order to influence the advice that they provide.16

1 See Universal Proxy (https://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2021/34-93596.pdf) (adopted Nov. 17, 2021) (to be codified at 17 CFR 240) (Final Rule Release). The Final Rule was adopted substantially as proposed by a vote of 4-1, with Commissioner Peirce dissenting.

2 See Proxy Voting Advice (https://www.sec.gov/rules/proposed/2021/34-93595.pdf) (proposed Nov. 17, 2021) (to be codified at 17 CFR 240) (Proposed Amendments Release); Exemptions from the Proxy Rules for Proxy Voting Advice (https://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2020/34-89372.pdf) (effective Nov. 2, 2020) (17 CFR 240) (2020 Rules Release).

3 Proxy voting advisors established a best practice principles group (BPPG), which has an oversight committee composed of non-affiliated industry experts and academics. The oversight committee’s 2021 report found that all six members of the BPPG including the two largest U.S. proxy voting advisors met the best practices principles regarding “(1) service quality, (2) conflicts-of-interest avoidance or management and (3) communications policy.” Proposed Amendments Release. at 14.

4 It is also possible that, if adopted, the Proposed Amendments could be subject to litigation. The National Association of Manufacturers already had filed suit against the SEC for announcing it would not enforce the 2020 Rules. See National Association of Manufacturers et al. v. SEC, No. 7:21-cv-183 (W.D. Tex.). The dissenting statements by Commissioners Roisman and Peirce highlight their procedural concerns regarding the rulemaking. Elad L. Roisman, Commissioner, U.S. Sec. & Exch. Comm’n, “Too Important to Regulate? Rolling Back Investor Protections on Proxy Voting Advice” (https://www.sec.gov/news/statement/roisman-proxy-advice-20211117) (Nov. 17, 2021); Hester M. Peirce, Commissioner, U.S. Sec. & Exch. Comm’n, “Dissenting Statement on Proxy Voting Advice Proposal” (https://www.sec.gov/news/statement/peirce-proxy-advice-20211117) (Nov. 17, 2021).

5 Final Rule Release at 8-9. Under current practice, shareholders are generally unable to vote for a mix of dissident and registrant nominees due to state and federal laws. The dissident and registrant generally send a proxy card listing only their respective nominees because consent is required to list an opposing party’s nominees on a proxy card, which is rarely provided. Additionally state law “provides that a later-dated proxy card invalidates an earlier dated proxy card,” which means that a shareholder “must choose between the dissident’s or registrant’s proxy card.”

6Id. at 27. The proposed rule would only have required a dissident to solicit shareholders representing at least a majority of shares. Commissioner Roisman stated that the revised minimum solicitation requirement “is a large reason that I am able to support the rule.” Elad L. Roisman, Commissioner, U.S. Sec. & Exch. Comm’n, “Statement on Universal Proxy Rules” (https://www.sec.gov/news/statement/roisman-universal-proxy-20211117) (Nov. 17, 2021).

7 Final Rule Release at 26-27.

8 Id. at 33.

9 Id. at 23-24.

10 Id. at 24.

11 Id. at 56, fn. 146.

12 Id. at 58.

13 Id.

14 Proposed Amendments Release at 9-10.

15 Id. at 25.

16 Id. at 27.

Information contained in this publication should not be construed as legal advice or opinion or as a substitute for the advice of counsel. The articles by these authors may have first appeared in other publications. The content provided is for educational and informational purposes for the use of clients and others who may be interested in the subject matter. We recommend that readers seek specific advice from counsel about particular matters of interest.

Copyright © 2021 Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP. All rights reserved.

OCIE issues risk alert re. COVID-19

OCIE issued a risk alert to share observations with broker-dealers and investment advisers (firms) based on OCIE’s ongoing COVID-19 outreach to registrants relating to the following six areas:

    1. (1) protection of investors’ assets – firms should consider additional steps to protect client assets (e.g. with regard to validating disbursements and protecting seniors);
    1. (2) supervision of personnel – firms should consider the impact of personnel working remotely as well as limitations on due diligence of other parties or new personnel;
    1. (3) practices relating to fees, expenses, and financial transactions – firms should consider the increased risk of misconduct due to increased financial pressures on firms and their personnel to compensate for lost revenue;
    1. (4) investment fraud – firms should consider the heightened risk of investment fraud through fraudulent offerings;
    1. (5) business continuity – firms should consider additional steps for protracted remote operations (e.g. security and support for infrastructure and personnel, succession planning); and
    1. (6) the protection of investor and other sensitive information – firms should consider the impact of remote operations on the protection of PII as well as heightened risks related to cybersecurity (e.g. heightened risk of fraudsters engaging in phishing scams).
Office Building

New SEC Proxy Regulations for Proxy Voting Advice Businesses and More Proxy Guidance for Investment Advisers

I. Introduction

At an open meeting on July 22, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 3-1 to adopt amendments to its proxy rules and to issue supplemental SEC guidance (Guidance) for investment advisers.1

The amendments to the proxy rules impose a number of new requirements on proxy voting advice businesses (PVABs). The Guidance discusses the proxy voting responsibilities of investment advisers when using a PVAB, and in particular, it focuses on adviser responsibilities when using the electronic voting platform of a PVAB.

II. Amendments to Proxy Rules

A quick summary of the rule amendments is highlighted in this chart:

A. Definition of Solicitation

Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and the rules thereunder govern the solicitation and voting of the proxies of issuers. The amendment to Rule 14a-1(l)(1)(iii) confirms that Proxy Voting Advice generally constitutes a “solicitation.” Under this amendment, a “solicitation” involves persons that make voting recommendations to shareholders and who market their expertise separately from other forms of investment advice and sell such advice for a fee. The amendment excludes persons who furnish reports only in response to an unprompted request from the definition of solicitation.2

Institutional Shareholder Services, one of the main PVABs, had filed a lawsuit challenging the SEC’s interpretation that proxy advice constitutes a solicitation. It is unclear whether that litigation, which was stayed pending the final rule, will move forward.3

B. The Exemptions

As noted above, PVAB’s may rely on exemptions from the definition of solicitation (in either Rule 14a-2(b)(1) or (b)(3)4(exemptions)), provided that they meet certain conditions.5

a. Conflicts of Interest Disclosures

Disclosure Requirement. New Rule 14a-2(b)(9)(i) requires as a condition to reliance on the exemptions that a PVAB disclose in detail to clients material conflicts of interest so that PVAB clients can fully understand the nature and scope of such an interest, transaction or relationship. PVAB clients must also be provided with any policies and procedures used to identify, and steps taken to address any such material conflicts. These disclosures will have to be provided either in the PVAB’s reports or in an electronic medium, such as a client voting platform. The Release notes that these disclosures should be readily accessible to clients and facilitate their ability to consider such disclosures together with the report at the time they make their voting decisions.

b.  Notice to Issuers and Safe Harbor

Notice Requirement. New subparagraph A to Rule 14a-2(b)(9)(ii) requires as a condition to reliance on the exemptions that a PVAB adopt and publicly disclose written policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that issuers have a report made available to them at or prior to the time when such report is disseminated to the PVAB’s clients. Provided that this initial notice is given to issuers, PVABs are under no obligation to provide issuers with additional opportunities to review the report, including if the report is later revised or updated in light of subsequent events. This condition does not apply to voting advice: (1) that is based on a “custom policy,” i.e., a policy proprietary to the client; and (2) regarding certain mergers and acquisitions and contested matters.6

Safe Harbor. New Rule 14a-2(b)(9)(iii) provides a non-exclusive safe harbor that a PVAB will be deemed to satisfy the notice requirement if it has written policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to provide issuers with a copy of its report, at no charge, no later than the time it is disseminated to the PVAB’s client.7

c. Mechanism to Become Aware of Issuer’s Response and Safe Harbor

Mechanism to Become Aware of Issuer’s Response. New subparagraph B to Rule 14a-2(b)(9)(ii) requires a PVAB, as a condition to relying on the exemptions, to adopt and publicly disclose policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure it provides clients with a mechanism by which they can reasonably be expected to become aware of any written responses by an issuer to a report, in a timely manner before the shareholder meeting or other action.

Safe Harbor. A non-exclusive safe harbor is available if the PVAB provides electronic notice on its electronic client platform (or through email or other electronic means) that the issuer has filed, or has informed the PVAB that it intends to file, additional soliciting materials (and includes an active hyperlink to those materials on EDGAR when available). The PVAB must provide a hyperlink to materials even if it believes the information is non-material or false or misleading.8

C. Amendments to the Anti-Fraud Provision

Largely consistent with the proposal, the SEC amended Rule 14a-9, the anti-fraud provision for proxy solicitations, to add examples of what may be misleading within the meaning of the rule. The amendment provides that “the failure to disclose material information regarding proxy voting advice, such as the proxy voting advice business’s methodology, sources of information, or conflicts of interest” could, depending on the particular facts and circumstances, be misleading within the meaning of the rule. In response to comments that the examples would heighten legal uncertainty and litigation risk, the Release emphasizes that the examples do not change the rule’s scope or application or make “mere differences of opinion” actionable, and the rule is still grounded in materiality.9

III. Supplement to Commission Guidance Regarding Proxy Voting Responsibilities of Investment Advisers

The Guidance addresses an investment adviser’s fiduciary duty and obligations under Rule 206(4)-6 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 as it relates to the adviser’s use of a PVAB to exercise of voting authority on behalf of its clients and supplements prior guidance issued by the SEC last year.10 The Guidance reiterates that an investment adviser should have policies and procedures in place that are reasonably designed to ensure that it exercises voting authority in the best interests of its clients.11

This Guidance focuses on an adviser’s use of PVABs’ pre-populated and automated voting services, which some advisers use to more efficiently address the thousands of votes they may make during a short proxy season. While the final rule amendments no longer require a PVAB to provide an issuer the ability to review a report prior to the PVAB client receiving it, and the SEC did not pursue imposing a “speed bump” on automated voting,12 the Guidance puts the onus on advisers to create and maintain policies and procedures that address any issuer response to a report. The Guidance also suggests advisers should disclose details regarding its use of automated voting and get client consent to such practices. The Guidance recommends the following:

  • Issuer’s Additional Soliciting Materials. Investment advisers follow policies and procedures that address situations where the adviser becomes aware of an issuer that has filed or intends to file additional soliciting material after the investment adviser has received the PVAB’s voting recommendation but before the proxy voting submission deadline.
  • Review of Proxy Advisory Firm Agreement. An investment adviser that uses a PVAB’s pre-populated and automated voting services should review its agreement with the PVAB to ensure that any non-public information possessed by the PVAB relating to the proxy vote of the investment adviser is not used in a manner that would not be in the best interests of the adviser’s client. This includes information on aggregated voting intentions of the investment adviser’s clients.
  • Informed Consent. An investment adviser wishing to use a PVAB’s automated voting service should obtain informed consent from its client prior to doing so.13 In particular, the investment adviser should disclose (1) the extent of its use of automated voting services and under what circumstances it uses such services; and (2) how its policies and procedures address the use of automated voting in cases where it becomes aware before the submission deadline for proxies to be voted at the shareholder meeting that an issuer intends to file or has filed additional soliciting materials with the SEC regarding a matter to be voted on. The Guidance recommends that an adviser’s policies and procedures address these disclosures.

IV. Conclusion

While the final amendments to the proxy rules are less prescriptive than the proposal, it is likely that PVABs will need to make some adjustments to their current practices, which may result in increased cost to clients and potential delays during the short proxy voting season. As Commissioner Allison Lee stated in her remarks opposing the adoption of the amendments, “The final rules will still add significant complexity and cost into a system that just isn’t broken” and “are still designed to, and will, increase issuer involvement in what is supposed to be independent advice from proxy advisory firms.”14It will be interesting to follow whether, as has been suggested, PVAB advice becomes less independent (i.e., if PVABs bow to issuer pressure due to concerns about threatened litigation). It is unclear whether the proposed amendments to the shareholder submission/resubmission thresholds, which were not addressed in the Release, will be finalized.15

The Guidance constitutes the latest SEC foray into fiduciary duty of advisers. Advisers will have to balance competing concerns and consider a cost-benefit approach to the review of policies and procedures and disclosure. The Guidance was not subject to notice and comment, is quite prescriptive and suggests an unusual level of detail with regard to policies and procedures and disclosure to clients.16 The SEC’s ability to enforce the Guidance, therefore, is not clear. It is also unclear whether the SEC will attempt to second guess an adviser’s good faith efforts to conform to the Guidance and best interest determinations required therein.


1 Exemptions from the Proxy Rules for Proxy Voting Advice, Release No. 34-89372 (July 22, 2020) (“Release”); Supplement to Commission Guidance Regarding Proxy Voting Responsibilities of Investment Adviser, Release No. IA-5547 (July 22, 2020) (“Guidance”); Amendments to Exemptions from the Proxy Rules for Proxy Voting Advice, Release No. 34-87457 (Nov. 5, 2019) (“Proposal”); Commission Guidance Regarding Proxy Voting Responsibilities of Investment Advisers, Release Nos. IA-5325; IC-33605 (Aug. 21, 2019) (“Prior Guidance”). See also, Commissioners’ statements: Jay Clayton, Chairman, SEC, Proxy Voting – Reaffirming and Modernizing the Core Principles of Fiduciary Duty and Transparency to Provide for Better Alignment of Interest Between Main Street Investors and the Market Professionals Who Invest and Vote on Their Behalf (July 22, 2020); Hester M. Peirce, Commissioner, SEC, Statement at Open Meeting on Exemptions from the Proxy Rules for Proxy Voting Advice and Supplement to Commission Guidance Regarding Proxy Voting Responsibilities of Investment Advisers (July 22, 2020); Elad L. Roisman, Commissioner, SEC, Open Meeting to Adopt Amendments to the Proxy Solicitation Rules (July 22, 2020).

2 The final rule clarifies that the SEC does not intend this definition to cover investment advisers, and presumably broker-dealers, that provide reports as part of their advisory services: “[The rule] is not intended to include communications made in the normal course of business by other professionals to their clients that may relate to proxy voting. Instead, the amendment is intended to apply to entities that market their reports as a service that is separate from other forms of investment advice to clients or prospective clients and sell such advice for a fee.” Release, supra note 1, at 35 n.124. It is understood that investment advisers and broker-dealers routinely vote proxies for their clients, both with and without their clients’ explicit voting instructions.

3 The Release includes wording designed to preserve other portions of the rule should litigation be successful. See Release, supra note 1, at 136; Institutional S’holder Servs. Inc. v. SEC, No. 1:19-cv-03275 (D.D.C. Oct. 31, 2019).

4 Rule 14a-2(b)(1) exempts solicitations by persons who do not seek the power to act as proxy for a shareholder and do not have a substantial interest in the subject matter of the communication beyond their interest as a shareholder. Rule 14a-2(b)(3) exempts reports furnished by an adviser to any other person with whom the adviser has a business relationship.

5PVABs are not required to comply with the Rule 14a-2(b)(9) conditions until December 1, 2021. However, this transition period does not apply to the amendments to the definition of solicitation and the anti-fraud provisions.

6 Commenters, including investment advisers, had argued that advice based on custom policies should not be required to be provided to issuers because those custom policies are formulated by and tailored to a particular client and based on proprietary and often confidential information.

7 These policies and procedures can contain conditions requiring that such issuers have filed their definitive proxy statement at least 40 days before the shareholder meeting and expressly acknowledged that they will only use the report for their internal purposes and/or in connection with the solicitation, and the report will not be published or otherwise shared except with the issuer’s employees or advisers.

8 The Release did clarify that inclusion of a hyperlink would not, by itself, make the PVAB liable for the content of the issuer’s hyperlinked statement.

9 See Release, supra note 1 at p.132.

10 See Guidance, supra note 1; Commission Guidance Regarding Proxy Voting Responsibilities of Investment Advisers, Release Nos. IA-5325; IC-33605 (Aug. 21, 2019) (“Prior Guidance”); see also Risk&Reward Client Alert, SEC Adopts Guidance on Proxy Advisory Firms and Proxy Rules (Aug. 29, 2019) (discussing the Prior Guidance).

11 Consistent with the terminology in the Release, the Guidance also uses the term PVAB rather than “proxy advisory firm,” which was previously used in the Prior Guidance.

12 As discussed in our prior client alert, the SEC requested comments on whether PVABs should be required to disable the automatic submission of votes unless a client clicks on the hyperlink and/or accesses the issuer’s response or otherwise confirms any pre-populated voting choices before the PVAB submits the votes to be counted. Risk&Reward Client Alert, New SEC Proposal May Complicate Proxy Voting & Engagement by Advisers (Nov. 19, 2019).

13 Informed consent requires that the adviser make full and fair disclosure such that the client is able to understand the material fact or conflict of interest and make an informed decision whether to provide consent. See Guidance, supra note 1.

14 Allison Herren Lee, Commissioner, SEC, Paying More For Less: Higher Costs for Shareholders, Less Accountability for Management (July 22, 2020).

15 It appears that this aspect of the rulemaking has been a point of contention in the SEC’s 2021 budget appropriation with Democrats seeking to prohibit the use of funds to finalize rulemaking under Rule 14a-8. See House Committee on Rules, H.R. 7617 – Defense, Commerce, Justice, Science and Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General Government, Homeland Security, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development Appropriations Act 2021.

16 In this respect, it can be argued that the Guidance is subject to similar criticism as the recently proposed valuation rule. See Hester M. Peirce, Commissioner, SEC, Statement on Good Faith Determinations of Fair Value under the Investment Company Act of 1940 Proposal (April 21, 2020) (questioning whether the benefits of the proposed rule “may be diminished significantly by an overly prescriptive approach to ensuring adequate board administration of the fair valuation process.”)

1940 Act Issues to Consider During the Pandemic – Part 11

Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force will be updating this high-level overview of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related issues for registered investment companies and fund managers as developments warrant.

UPDATED ISSUES:

  • Market Closures and Market Restrictions: A list of securities market closures and market restrictions is available here(Updated 6/22/2020)
  • In-Person Board Meetings: The Securities and Exchange Commission has provided exemptive relief in orders under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act Orders) to allow fund boards to meet telephonically or by video conference to consider and vote on matters that would otherwise require an in-person vote.1 The relief applies whenever reliance upon it is necessary or appropriate due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. The SEC has issued an order (1940 Act Extension Order) that extends relief from the in-person board meeting requirement, which previously was scheduled to expire on Aug.15, to a date to be specified in a public notice from SEC staff, which will be a date at least two weeks from the date of the notice and no earlier than Dec. 31, 2020.2 (Updated 6/22/2020)
  • SEC Filings: The 1940 Act Orders and orders under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 provide relief from the timeliness requirements of certain filings under the 1940 Act and the Advisers Act.3 The 1940 Act Orders provide relief from the timeliness requirements of Form N-CEN, Form N-PORT, and Form N-23C-2 when a fund is unable to meet a deadline due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. The relief for Forms N-CEN and N-PORT applies to filing obligations for which the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, while the relief for Form N-23C-2 extends to Aug. 15, 2020. The Advisers Act Orders provide timeliness relief for Form ADV and Form PF filings and for Form ADV Part 2 client delivery obligations for 45 days from the original due date, when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020. The SEC previously posted staff guidance that Form ADV does not have to be updated to reflect temporary teleworking locations.4 The SEC has also provided relief from timeliness requirements for certain filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.5 Note that filings not covered by the orders continue to be required on a timely basis, including filings on Form N-LIQUID, Form N-CR, and Form N-MFP, although it is possible that the SEC will consider issues with these forms on an individualized basis. The SEC provided information on contacting the staff with issues, including issues with these filings, in press releases announcing the actions.The SEC announced in the 1940 Act Extension Order that the relief from 1940 Act filings requirements provided in the 1940 Act Orders will not be further extended. (Updated 6/22/2020)
  • Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports: The 1940 Act Orders also provide relief from the obligations to timely transmit annual and semiannual reports to shareholders and to file them with the SEC. The relief applies when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, and the fund is unable to prepare or transmit the report due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. In addition, the SEC announced that it would not provide a basis for an SEC enforcement action if a fund does not timely deliver a current prospectus because of circumstances related to COVID-19 when delivery was originally required during this period. The position is not available to an initial purchase by the investor of the fund’s shares.The SEC announced in the 1940 Act Extension Order that this relief will not be further extended. (Updated 6/22/2020)
  • Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has established the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), which provides non-recourse funding to eligible borrowers owning eligible collateral in the form of AAA-rated asset-backed securities backed by newly and recently originated consumer and small business loans.A TALF borrower must have significant operations in and a majority of its employees based in the United States. The New York Fed has provided guidance that, for a borrower organized as an investment fund, this test will be applied to the borrower’s investment manager.8 The facility initially will make up to $100 billion of loans available, and each loan provided under the facility will have a maturity of three years. Unless the program is extended, no new credit extensions will be made after Sept. 30, 2020. The SEC staff in 2009 provided no-action guidance to allow registered funds to participate in a similar facility established in 2008.9 The SEC staff has confirmed that the 2009 guidance is also applicable to the current facility, and it has provided guidance that a fund or business development company may participate in TALF indirectly through a private fund.10 The initial TALF subscription date was June 17, 2020, and the New York Fed has announced that approximately $252 million in TALF loans were requested on that date.11 (Updated 6/22/2020)
  • Money Market Mutual Funds:
    • Liquidity Facility: The Federal Reserve Board has announced a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) that is intended to assist money market funds in meeting demands for redemptions.12 Under the MMLF, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston will lend to depository institutions and bank holding companies, taking as collateral assets purchased by the borrower from prime money market funds (i) concurrently with the borrowing or (ii) or on or after March 18, but before the opening of the facility. The facility is similar to the Asset-Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility that operated from late 2008 to early 2010 but will purchase a broader range of assets. The Federal Reserve Board expanded the facility to cover certain assets purchased from tax-exempt municipal money market funds.13 The Federal Reserve Board has announced that the facility opened March 23, and full documentation and additional guidance are available.14  As of May 31, 2020, the total outstanding amount of the loans under the facility was approximately $32.5 billion (down from $39.4 billion as of May 14 and $51.1 billion as of April 14).15 (Updated 6/22/2020)
    • Form N-CR: Several money market funds filed on Form N-CR in March to report financial support, and one money market fund filed on Form N-CR in March to report downward deviations of its shadow price by more than ¼ of 1%. An amended report is required to be filed within four business days of the provision of financial support or downward deviation that describes the reason for the support and terms of the support or the reason for the deviation, as applicable. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Purchases by Affiliated Banks: The Federal Reserve Board has issued a template exemptive letter allowing banks to purchase assets from affiliated money market funds, subject to certain conditions, including that the assets must be investment grade and purchased at fair market value.16 In addition, the SEC staff has granted no-action relief to permit certain bank affiliates of money market funds to purchase securities from the funds in accordance with the Federal Reserve Board guidance, but otherwise pursuant to rule 17a-9, subject to certain conditions.17 The SEC no-action letter does not affect the ability of other money market fund affiliates to purchase assets from the fund in accordance with rule 17a-9. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Guaranty: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), which was enacted into law on March 27, suspends the existing prohibition on the use of the Exchange Stabilization Fund for the establishment of any guaranty programs for the money market fund industry.18 Any such guarantee shall be limited to a guarantee of the total value of a shareholder’s account in a participating fund as of the close of business on the day before the announcement of the guarantee and terminate not later than Dec. 31, 2020. This provision allows the Department of the Treasury to establish a Money Market Funds Guaranty Program but does not require it to do so. (Updated 3/31/2020)

ISSUES:

  • Transfer Agents and Fingerprinting Requirements: The SEC has provided a broad exemption from requirements applicable to transfer agents except for the safeguarding requirement.19 The exemption also applies to broker-dealers and other persons who are subject to a fingerprinting requirement. Transfer agents and other persons relying on the relief must provide notice to the SEC. The SEC encourages transfer agents and the issuers for whom they act to inform affected security holders. The SEC has extended the period covered by the exemption to June 30; it originally was due to expire May 31.20 (Updated 6/1/2020)
  • Exchange-Traded Funds:
    • The New York Fed has established the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF), which purchases in the secondary market corporate bonds issued by U.S. companies and shares of U.S.-listed ETFs whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds.21 The New York Fed has retained BlackRock Financial Markets Advisory as a third-party vendor to serve as the investment manager for this facility.22 The SMCCF will cease making such purchases no later than Sept. 30, 2020, unless extended. The Federal Reserve Board announced on April 9 that the SMCCF had been expanded and, together with the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility, will have a combined size of up to $750 billion.23 The SMCCF may purchase any U.S.-listed ETF whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds, although the preponderance of ETF holdings will be ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds. The SMCCF will not purchase shares of an ETF if it then would own more than 20% of the ETF’s shares.  The facility began making purchases on May 12, 2020, and is transacting initially with primary dealers that deal directly with the New York Fed.  As of May 19, the SMCCF had made purchases of approximately $1.307 billion, all in ETFs, and it had an additional $287 million of purchases that had not yet reached settlement.24 (Updated 6/1/2020)
    • For an ETF that invests in foreign markets that close, the ETF may wish to consider whether to invest in alternative instruments, such as ADRs, in order to achieve the desired exposure to the foreign securities. In circumstances where there is no ability to make additional investments in appropriate alternative instruments, an ETF may wish to stop accepting creation unit purchases. The SEC previously has noted that ETFs generally may suspend the issuance of creation units only for a limited time and only due to extraordinary circumstances, such as when the markets on which the ETF’s portfolio holdings are traded are closed for a limited period of time.25 ETF issuers should be aware that any decision to suspend creations could have an impact on the arbitrage efficiency of the ETF and could lead to greater deviations between the market price of the ETF shares and the NAV of the shares. Like other open-end funds, ETFs cannot suspend redemptions unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed or there is appropriate guidance from the SEC. ETFs are permitted to charge transaction fees of up to 2% on redemptions. Such fees are designed to offset the costs of redemptions to the ETF. Some fixed-income ETFs that deliver cash redemptions instead of in-kind redemptions reportedly have increased their transaction fees on redemptions in light of increased transaction costs in the bond market. (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Paycheck Protection Program:The Paycheck Protection Program authorizes forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees during the COVID-19 crisis.26 Borrowers submitting a PPP application must certify that current economic uncertainty makes this loan request necessary to support the ongoing operations of the applicant. The Small Business Administration, which implements the program, has announced that any borrower that, together with its affiliates, received PPP loans with an original principal amount of less than $2 million will be deemed to have made the required certification in good faith. Hedge funds and private equity funds are not eligible for PPP loans, but their portfolio companies may be able to qualify.27 The SEC staff has provided guidance that an advisory firm that receives a PPP loan may be required to disclose the loan and its financial condition to clients.28 (New 5/15/2020)
  • Division of Investment Management Statement: The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has issued a statement emphasizing the ongoing importance of updating and delivering the required information to fund investors in a timely manner, even during this period of operational challenge.29 The statement reminds funds of the obligation to update prospectuses and deliver them to new investors,30 and it encourages funds to consider whether disclosures should be revised based on how COVID-19-related events may affect the fund and its investors. (New 4/20/2020)
  • Closed-End Funds: A closed-end fund is required to suspend its offering of shares until it amends its prospectus if the fund’s net asset value declines more than 10% from the NAV as of the effective date of the registration statement. The SEC staff has released guidance allowing the use of a prospectus supplement, with notice to the SEC staff, rather than an amendment to the registration statement.31 (New 4/20/2020)
  • Shareholder Meetings: The SEC staff has provided guidance to both operating companies and funds that is intended to provide regulatory flexibility to companies seeking to change the date and location of shareholder meetings and to use new technologies, such as “virtual” shareholder meetings that avoid the need for in-person shareholder attendance, while at the same time ensuring that shareholders and other market participants are informed of any changes.32 The guidance notes that the ability to conduct a “virtual” meeting is governed by state law, where permitted, and the issuer’s governing documents. Note that companies seeking to conduct a virtual meeting may, under state law, need to have an appropriate process for shareholders to vote at the meeting. The guidance has been revised to extend to special meetings as well as annual meetings and to provide further guidance on notice requirements. (Updated 4/20/2020)
  • Business Development Companies: The SEC has provided limited and conditional exemptive relief for business development companies that provides additional flexibility to BDCs to issue and sell senior securities.33 In addition, for BDCs with an SEC order permitting co-investment transactions with certain affiliates, the SEC relief allows the BDC to participate in certain follow-on investments with regulated funds and affiliated funds. The relief is available until Dec. 31, 2020. (New 4/13/2020)
  • Regulation BI/Form CRS: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton has announced that the SEC believes that the June 30, 2020, compliance date for Regulation Best Interest and other requirements, including the requirement to file and begin delivering Form CRS, remains appropriate.34 To the extent that a firm is unable to make certain filings or meet other requirements because of disruptions caused by COVID-19, including as a result of efforts to comply with national, state or local health and safety directives and guidance, the firm should engage with the SEC. The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued two Risk Alerts that provide broker-dealers and investment advisers with advance information about the expected scope and content of the initial examinations for compliance with Regulation BI and Form CRS,35 and FINRA has provided guidance on best practices in preparing for Regulation BI.36 The SEC staff has announced that it is now accepting filings on Form CRS.37 (Updated 4/13/2020)
  • Paper Submissions: Although most SEC filings are now made electronically via EDGAR, there are still some submissions that normally must be submitted in paper form.
    • The SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets has announced relief for certain submissions that are required to be filed in paper format with a manual signature and for related notarization requirements.38 The affected filings include audited annual reports submitted by broker-dealers. Filers should contact Division staff to discuss the appropriate process for filing. The staff statement covers submissions for the period from and including March 16, 2020, to June 30, 2020. (New 4/7/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance has announced that notices of proposed sales of securities on Form 144 may be filed via email and, subject to certain conditions, may have a typed form of signature rather than a manual signature.39 (New 4/13/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has announced that requests for hearing applications on notices of applications for exemptive orders under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 must be submitted by email.40 (New 4/13/2020)
  • Accounting Issues: SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia has announced that the SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant recognizes that the accounting and financial reporting implications of COVID-19 may require companies to make significant judgments and estimates in a number of accounting areas, including fair value and impairment considerations.41 The OCA has consistently not objected to well-reasoned judgments that entities have made, and it will continue to apply this perspective. The OCA remains available for consultation and encourages stakeholders to contact it with questions they encounter as a result of COVID-19. (New 4/7/2020)
  • Affiliated Purchases of Debt Securities: The SEC staff has issued no-action relief to affiliates of open-end funds, other than exchange-traded funds and money market funds, to allow them to purchase debt securities from the funds.42 The relief is subject to conditions, including that the price must be the security’s fair market value per Section 2(a)(41) of the 1940 Act, provided that this price is not materially different from the value indicated by a reliable third-party pricing service, and that the fund must publicly disclose the purchase on its website and inform the staff. In addition, if the purchaser thereafter sells the security for a higher price, it must promptly pay the difference to the fund, unless the purchaser is a bank or bank affiliate and this condition would conflict with Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. The relief will be in effect until further notice from the staff. (New 3/31/2020)
  • SEC Lending and Borrowing Relief: The SEC has issued an order providing additional flexibility for open-end funds (other than money market funds) and insurance company separate accounts registered as unit investment trusts to obtain short-term funding.43 The relief is available until a notice terminating it is issued, which will be at least two weeks from the date of the notice and no earlier than June 30, 2020. Prior to relying on any of the relief, the fund would have to notify SEC staff. In addition, interfund lending requires notification on a fund’s public website.
    • Fund affiliates may lend money to the fund on a collateralized basis, provided the board makes determinations that the borrowing is in the best interest of the fund and its shareholders and that it will be for the purposes of satisfying shareholder redemptions.
    • For fund families with an SEC order permitting an interfund lending and borrowing facility, a lending fund may lend up to 25% of its current net assets and the term may be for any period that does not extend beyond the expiration of the relief, notwithstanding the terms of the order, provided, among other conditions, that the board reasonably determines that the maximum term for interfund loans is appropriate. (Recent orders typically limit lending funds to 15% of current net assets and the term to seven days.)
    • For fund families without an interfund lending order, funds may lend and borrow in accordance with the terms of any such order issued within the past twelve months, with the same modifications.44
    • Funds are not required to seek shareholder approval if lending under the relief would violate a fundamental policy, provided that the board reasonably determines that the lending or borrowing is in the best interests of the fund and its shareholders. (New 3/27/2020)
  • OCIE Statement: The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued a statement that it has moved to conduct examinations off-site through correspondence unless it is absolutely necessary to be on-site, and that it will work with registrants to ensure that its work can be conducted in a manner consistent with maintaining normal operations and with necessary or appropriate health and safety measures.45 OCIE also stated that reliance on regulatory relief would not be a risk factor utilized in determining whether OCIE commences an examination, and it encourages registrants to utilize available regulatory relief as needed. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Signatures on EDGAR Filings: The SEC staff has issued a statement on the manual signature and record requirements for documents filed electronically with the SEC.46 The staff will not recommend enforcement action if a signatory retains a document adopting the signature and provides the document to the filer for retention, with the time and date executed, and the filer establishes and maintains policies and procedures governing this process. (New 3/27/2020)
  • FINRA Guidance: FINRA has issued guidance that provides temporary relief and guidance with respect to a number of requirements, including filings that would otherwise be required for temporary relocations and the timing of FOCUS reports and certain other filings.47 The guidance will be available until FINRA publishes a Regulatory Notice announcing a termination date. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Blue Sky Guidance: A number of state and provincial securities regulators have published guidance that provides relief or other COVID-19-related updates. The North American Securities Administrators Association has established a resource page to collect these updates.48 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • State and Local Closures: Many states, counties and cities have announced business closures in connection with “shelter-in-place” public health efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19. Some of the orders may contain broad exceptions for the financial services industry, while others may not. Beyond the direct impact on firms in those localities, review the location of service providers and the terms of these orders carefully to determine whether necessary support functions will remain available. FINRA has posted a resource page with links to state “shelter-in-place” and “stay-at-home” orders.49 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Tax Implications for Funds with Institutional Shareholders: For institutional funds with few shareholders, beware that the fund could fall into personal holding company status if at any time during the last half of the taxable year more than 50% in value of the fund’s shares are owned, directly or indirectly, by or for not more than 5 “individuals.” For purposes of this rule, employee pension trusts, private foundations, trusts forming part of a plan providing for the payment of supplemental unemployment compensation benefits, and a trust, a portion of which is permanently set aside or to be used exclusively for charitable purposes, are considered individuals. (New 3/23/2020)
  • CPO NFA Filings: The CFTC staff has provided no-action relief to commodity pool operators that extends certain filing deadlines.50 With respect to Form CPO-PQR filings under CFTC Regulation 4.27, Small and Mid-Sized CPOs had until May 15, 2020, to submit their annual filings for 2019, while Large CPOs have until July 15, 2020, to submit their filings for Q1 2020. For pool annual reports under CFTC Regulations 4.7(b)(3) or 4.22(c) that were due on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for filing and distributing the report, which must include certified financial statements, was extended until 45 days after the due date specified in the regulations. For monthly or quarterly reports to pool participants under CFTC Regulation 4.7(b)(2) or 4.22(b) for all reporting periods ending on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for distribution to participants was extended to 45 days after the end of the reporting period (instead of 30 days as stated in the regulations). The National Futures Association has issued similar relief for CPO Members and has provided Commodity Trading Advisor Members with similar relief for NFA Form PR filings.51 (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Liquidity Risk Management: Current developments raise a number of issues for the management of funds’ liquidity risk:
    • Assessment, management, and periodic review of liquidity risk: Funds should review fund liquidity risk in light of current and reasonably expected market events and redemption patterns and may need to consider appropriate mitigating steps for strengthening the fund’s ability to meet redemptions, including readying borrowing and other liquidity facilities. Some fund managers may wish to consider use of the relief provided by the SEC and its staff for affiliated transactions.
    • Classification of portfolio investments: Rule 22e-4 requires funds to review their portfolio investments’ liquidity classifications more frequently than monthly if changes in relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations are reasonably expected to materially affect classifications. Such reviews should focus especially on holdings that could be considered illiquid investments as a result of these developments or that could fall out of highly liquid investment status. An important consideration will be a review of the reasonably anticipated trading sizes in light of redemption expectations. Funds should be alert to the possibility that vendor classifications may be based on historical rather than current data.
    • Highly liquid investment minimum: For funds that currently hold primarily highly liquid assets, and therefore are not required to have an HLIM, the program administrator may need to examine whether the fund can still qualify for that status. For HLIM funds, the HLIM may need to be reviewed under the required factors in light of current market and redemption developments and, if a shortfall is reasonably anticipated, a shortfall response plan should be developed, which must include a plan for reporting shortfalls to the fund’s board.
    • Illiquid investments: During this period of extreme market volatility, the fund should monitor closely whether there is a need to reclassify holdings as illiquid investments. Funds should be prepared to file Form N-LIQUID if the fund’s illiquid assets exceed 15% of its net assets. The program administrator should have guidance designed to prevent purchases that would violate the prohibition on acquiring illiquid investments when over the 15% limit. We do not yet know if the SEC will provide guidance relieving funds from filing Form N-LIQUID in the event of foreign or other market closings that are beyond the scope of existing guidance on extended foreign holidays.
    • Redemptions in kind: Funds may wish to consider whether redemptions in kind would be an appropriate tool for large redemption requests, including whether operational logistics are in place to accommodate any such redemption requests. (Updated 3/19/2020)
  • MiFID II Reporting: Under the MiFID II delegated regulation, investment firms providing the service of portfolio management and subject to MiFID II must inform the client where the overall value of the portfolio, as evaluated at the beginning of each reporting period, depreciates by 10% and thereafter at multiples of 10%, no later than the end of the business day in which the threshold is exceeded or, in a case where the threshold is exceeded on a non-business day, the close of the next business day.52 (New 3/19/2020)
  • Fund Boards: Fund directors should stay up to speed on current market events so they can properly apply their business judgment as necessary from a governance standpoint. In many cases, fund boards are receiving periodic status reports or attending status updates from fund advisers. Examples of areas for directors to consider include, for funds, fund flows, liquidity levels, valuation, and performance; and for fund advisers, status of operations under business continuity plans, market assessments, and the assessment of critical fund service providers. Board reporting from fund advisers is particularly important during times of market stress. To strike an appropriate balance between staying apprised and being efficient and respectful of fund advisory personnel time, boards may seek to channel questions or communications through independent counsel or the board chair/lead independent director. (New 3/19/2020)
  • Business Continuity Plans: Business continuity at the current time is key. In most cases, those plans already are in effect. Consideration should be given to contingency planning in the event that fund managers, transfer agents, pricing services, or other service providers are unable to provide services because of employee absences. Funds and fund managers should make and communicate revisions to their plans as they adjust to the developing environment.
  • Valuation: Funds should examine whether they are able to obtain valid prices for their investments, especially in markets that may be closed or have limited availability. Experience from the 2008 financial crisis shows that vendor reassurances as to the quality of their pricing information may provide false comfort, so vendor prices should be checked for reliability. At this time, we do not expect the SEC to provide relief from the daily pricing requirement.
  • Redemptions: Under Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act, open-end funds generally may not suspend the right of redemption unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed, or the SEC provides guidance that daily redemptions are not required because trading is restricted or an emergency exists. At this point, funds should assume that they must continue to provide daily redemptions. Funds should review any borrowing arrangements that may need to be utilized. We are closely monitoring for any relevant guidance from the SEC or its staff on this topic.
  • Cybersecurity: Firms are at increased risk of cyberattacks, particularly with the use of remote offices and telework. Anxious employees may be more vulnerable to email phishing attacks. Employees should be reminded of the continued need for vigilance.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your Stradley Ronon contact, or to any member of Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force, with any questions and concerns you may have during this period. You can reach Sara Crovitz at 202.507.6414 or scrovitz@stradley.com, or John Baker at 202.419.8413 or jbaker@stradley.com.


1 For the 1940 Act Orders, see Release No. IC-33824 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33824.pdf; Release No. IC-33817 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33817.pdf.  The various forms of relief provided in the 1940 Act Orders, which are further discussed below, are subject to conditions that are set out in the orders, such as subsequent ratification of votes, notice to the SEC of filing delays, and website disclosure of issues with the delivery of shareholder reports and prospectuses.

Release No. IC-33897 (June 19, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/ic-33897.pdf.

3 For the Advisers Act Orders, see IA-5469 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5469.pdf; Release No. IA-5463 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5463.pdf.

4 Using IARD, Form ADV: Item 1.F, https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/iard/iardfaq.shtml#item1f.

5 Release No. 34-88465(Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88465.pdf; Release No. 34-88318 (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/34-88318.pdf.

6 Press Release 2020-73, SEC Extends Conditional Exemptions from Reporting and Proxy Delivery Requirements for Public Companies, Funds, and Investment Advisers Affected by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-73; Press Release 2020-63, SEC Takes Targeted Action to Assist Funds and Advisers, Permits Virtual Board Meetings and Provides Conditional Relief from Certain Filing Procedures (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-63.

7 Policy Tools:  Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/talf.htm.

8 FAQs:  Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (June 15, 2020), https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility-faq.

9 Franklin Templeton Investments, SEC No-Action Letter (June 19, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/franklintempleton061909.htm.  Stradley Ronon acted as counsel for this no-action request.

10 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (May 27, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/ici-sifma-052720.  The guidance on participating through a special purpose vehicle makes generally available to funds and BDCs a 2009 no-action position that originally was available only to the requesting party.  See T. Rowe Price Associates, SEC No-Action Letter (Oct. 8, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/troweprice100809.htm.

11 Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility Rates, https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility-rates.

12 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board broadens program of support for the flow of credit to households and businesses by establishing a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) (Mar. 18, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200318a.htm.

13 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board expands its program of support for flow of credit to the economy by taking steps to enhance liquidity and functioning of crucial state and municipal money markets (Mar. 20, 2020) https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200320b.htm.

14 Policy Tools: Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/mmlf.htm.

15 Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (June 9, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/pdcf-cpff-mmlf-pplf-6-10-2020.pdfsee also Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities  Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (May 23, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/files/pdcf-cpff-mmlf-5-24-20.pdf; Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (Apr. 23, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/pdcf-mmlf-and-cpff-4-24-20.pdf.

16 Money Market Mutual Funds Template Letter (Mar. 17, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/legalinterpretations/fedreserseactint20200317.pdf.

17 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 19, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-031920-17a.

18 H.R. 748, § 4015, 116th Cong. (2020), https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr748/BILLS-116hr748enr.pdf.

19 Release No. 34-88448 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88448.pdf.

20 Release No. 34-88960 (May 27, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88960.pdf.

21 Policy Tools: Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/smccf.htm.

22 Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/secondary-market-corporate-credit-facility.

23 Press Release, Federal Reserve takes additional actions to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200409a.htm.

24 Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities  Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (May 28, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/pmccf-smccf-talf-5-29-20.pdf.  The Federal Reserve Board is making publicly available detailed information on its transactions and holdings under the facility.  See SMCCF Transaction-specific Disclosures (May 29, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/files/smccf-transition-specific-disclosures-5-29-20.xlsx.

25 Release Nos. 33-10695, IC-33646 (Sept. 25, 2019), 84 Fed. Reg. 57162, 57178 (Oct. 24, 2019), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2019-21250.

26 Paycheck Protection Program, https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/paycheck-protection-program.

27 Business Loan Program Temporary Changes; Paycheck Protection Program—Requirements—Promissory Notes, Authorizations, Affiliation, and Eligibility, 85 Fed. Reg. 23450, 23451 (Apr. 28, 2020), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2020-09098.

28 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A II.4, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

29 SEC Division of Investment Management, Importance of Delivering Timely and Material Information to Investment Company Investors (Apr. 14, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/delivering-timely-material-information.

30 As discussed above, the SEC has provided limited conditional relief from the obligation to timely deliver prospectuses to existing shareholders. See supra Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports.

31 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A III.5, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

32 Staff Guidance for Conducting Annual Meetings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocr/staff-guidance-conducting-annual-meetings-light-covid-19-concerns.

33 Release No. IC-33837 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/ic-33837.pdf.

34 SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, Investors Remain Front of Mind at the SEC: Approach to Allocation of Resources, Oversight and Rulemaking; Implementation of Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-clayton-investors-rbi-form-crs.

35 OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest (Apr. 7, 2020),
https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert-%20Regulation%20Best%20Interest%20Exams.pdf; OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Form CRS (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert%20-%20Form%20CRS%20Exams.pdf.

36 FINRA Highlights Firm Practices from Regulation Best Interest Preparedness Reviews (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/regulation-best-interest/preparedness.

37 Frequently Asked Questions on Form CRS, https://www.sec.gov/investment/form-crs-faq#filing.

38 Division of Trading and Markets Staff Statement Regarding Requirements for Certain Paper Submissions in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/tm/paper-submission-requirements-covid-19.

39 SEC Division of Corporation Finance, Statement Regarding Requirements for Form 144 Paper Filings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 10, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/form-144-paper-filings-email-option.

40 IM Information Update IM-INFO-2020-03 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/im-info-2020-03.pdf.

41 SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia, Statement on the Importance of High-Quality Financial Reporting in Light of the Significant Impacts of COVID-19 (Apr. 3, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-teotia-financial-reporting-covid-19-2020-04-03.

42 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 26, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-032620-17a.

43 Release No. IC-33821 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33821.pdf.

44 Recent interfund lending orders are available at https://www.sec.gov/rules/icreleases.shtml#interfundlending.

45 OCIE Statement on Operations and Exams – Health, Safety, Investor Protection and Continued Operations are our Priorities (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocie/announcement/ocie-statement-operations-health-safety-investor-protection-and-continued.

46 Staff Statement Regarding Rule 302(b) of Regulation S-T in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/staff-statement-regarding-rule-302b-regulation-s-t-light-covid-19-concerns.

47 Frequently Asked Questions Related to Regulatory Relief Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/guidance/faqs/coronavirus. FINRA guidance, updates, and other information on COVID-19 are available at https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19. Other self-regulatory organizations are also providing relief and guidance. See, e.g., Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-021 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-021-Filing-Extensions-for-Annual-Reports-and-FOCUS-Reports.pdf; Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-022 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-022-Extension-of-Time-for-Certain-Filings-Currently-Due-April-1-2020.pdf.

48 Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 Updates, https://www.nasaa.org/industry-resources/covid-19-updates/.

49 State “Shelter-in-Place” and “Stay-at-Home” Orders, https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19/shelter-in-place.

50 Press Release No. 8136-20, CFTC Issues Third Wave of Relief to Market Participants in Response to COVID-19 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8136-20.

51 Notice to Members I-20-15 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.nfa.futures.org/news/newsNotice.asp?ArticleID=5218.

52 European Commission Delegated Regulation art. 62, https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/3/2016/EN/3-2016-2398-EN-F1-1.PDF.

 

Surviving Election Season: Refresher on Pay-to-Play Rules for Investment Advisers

Election season is already in full swing. As a result, investment advisers may wish to increase their attention to applicable pay-to-play compliance obligations, as further described herein.

I. Background on the Rule

In connection with political contributions, registered investment advisers, certain exempt reporting advisers and foreign private advisers (collectively referred to herein as “advisers”),1 as well as their “covered associates”2 (which is broadly defined), are subject to Rule 206(4)-5 of the Advisers Act, otherwise known as the “pay-to-play” rule. The purpose of the rule is to curtail “pay-to-play” practices by advisers seeking to manage the assets of state and local governments (e.g., public pension funds and investments by public universities) in return for political contributions. The SEC does not have to show any intent or quid pro quo to allege a violation of this anti-fraud rule. Penalties imposed by the SEC in connection with violations of the rule are severe even for foot-faults. Such penalties generally include disgorgement of any advisory fees received from such governmental entities, as well as the imposition by the SEC of civil monetary penalties (which are regularly in the hundreds of thousands of dollars).3

II. Prohibitions

     A. Ban on Fees Following Contributions

As a general matter, the rule prohibits advisers and their covered associates from making political “contributions”4 to any “official”5 of a “government entity”6 who was, at the time of the contribution, an incumbent, candidate or successful candidate for an elective office of a government entity if that office could influence the hiring of an investment adviser for such entity or have authority to appoint a person who could have such influence. If such a political contribution is made, the adviser is prohibited from receiving any compensation from advisory services to that government entity for two years thereafter – otherwise known as the “time-out” period. The adviser can still provide uncompensated advisory services to such entity during the time-out period, or provide uncompensated advisory services until the entity locates a replacement adviser. Note that an adviser to a “covered investment pool”7 in which a government entity invests or is solicited to invest shall be treated as though that adviser was providing or seeking to provide investment advisory services directly to the entity.

     B. Ban on Using Third Parties to Solicit Government Business

The rule further prohibits an adviser from providing payment8 to (or agreeing to pay), directly or indirectly, any person to solicit9 a government entity for advisory services on behalf of the adviser. However, such solicitation is not prohibited if the person is a (1) “regulated person”10 (such as a registered investment adviser, broker-dealer or municipal adviser) or an (2) executive officer, general partner, managing member, similar person or employee of the adviser. The rule also prohibits an adviser from coordinating or soliciting a person or PAC to: (1) contribute to an official of a government entity to which the adviser provides or seeks to provide advisory services or (2) make a payment to a political party of a state or locality in which the adviser provides or seeks to provide advisory services to a government entity.

     C. Catchall Ban

As a sort of catchall provision, the rule prohibits any acts done indirectly which, if done directly, would violate the rule. For example, the SEC staff has indicated that while a covered associate’s contribution to a PAC generally would not trigger the two-year time-out, if the contribution is earmarked or known to be provided for the benefit of a particular political official, it would implicate the catchall provision because the covered associate would be doing indirectly what it could not do directly.11

III. Exceptions and Exemptions from the Rule

     A. Exception for Certain New Covered Associates

Whereas the rule requires a two-year look-back for all covered associates who solicit clients, it only requires a six-month look-back for “new” covered associates who do not solicit clients. The “look-back” period will follow covered associates that change advisers, such that a prohibited contribution by a covered associate will result in a “time out” for the covered associate’s new firm for the remainder of the two-year or six-month period, depending on whether the covered associate solicits clients for the new firm. To prevent advisers from channeling contributions through departing covered persons, if a covered person makes a prohibited contribution and then leaves the employ of that adviser, the former adviser will also still be subject to the two-year time-out period, despite the departure of the covered associate who made the contribution.

     B. De Minimis Exception

The primary exception to the pay-to-play rule is the de minimis exception. The de minimis exception allows an adviser’s covered associate that is a natural person to contribute: (1) up to $350 to an official per election (with primary and general elections counting separately) if the covered associate is entitled to vote for the official at the time of the contribution; and (2) up to $150 to an official per election (with primary and general elections counting separately) if the covered associate is not entitled to vote for the official at the time of the contribution. Most firms implement pre-clearance requirements in connection with covered person political contributions in order to ensure compliance with this exception. Any contribution above such de minimis amounts, no matter how small, can trigger a violation of the rule.

     C. Returned Contribution Exception

If a covered associate makes a contribution that triggers the two-year time-out period solely because he or she was not entitled to vote for the official at the time of the contribution, the adviser can undo the contribution under very narrow circumstances. To be eligible for the returned contribution exception, the contribution had to be less than $350, the adviser must have discovered the contribution within four months of the date of such contribution, and the adviser must cause the contributor to re-collect the contribution within 60 days after the adviser discovers the contribution. However, an adviser can only rely on the returned contribution exception on limited occasions (for advisers with fewer than 50 employees, twice in a 12-month period; for advisers with more than 50 employees, three times in a 12-month period), and an adviser can never use the returned contribution exception for the same covered associate twice. Again, this exception is only applicable if the violation is discovered and remedied on a timely basis.

     D. Request for Exemptive Relief

In extremely narrow circumstances, the rule also allows an adviser to apply for an order exempting it from the two-year time­out requirement in the event of an inadvertent violation that falls outside of the exceptions set forth above. The SEC will grant orders only when, according to the SEC, the imposition of the time-out provision is unnecessary to achieve the rule’s intended purpose.12 Advisers applying for an order must do so through an application process that exposes the firm and the covered associate to public scrutiny.

IV. Recordkeeping Requirements

As part of their recordkeeping requirements under the pay-to-play rule, advisers must collect and maintain:

  • the names, titles and business and residence addresses of all covered associates;
  • all government entities to which the adviser provides or has provided investment advisory services, or which have been investors in any covered investment pool to which the adviser provides or has provided investment advisory services, in the last five years;
  • all direct and indirect contributions made by the adviser or its covered associates to an official of a government entity or direct or indirect payments made to a political party or PAC; and
  • the name and business address of each regulated person to which the adviser agrees to provide direct or indirect payment to solicit a government entity.

V. Summary

If an investment adviser would like to remain eligible to bid for government contracts, it should take affirmative steps to ensure that the firm and its covered persons do not violate the pay-to-play rule. Robust pay-to-play policies and procedures, as well as pre-clearance of political contributions, are recommended best practices for advisers that seek government clients. Re-education of adviser personnel and covered associates as to the requirements of the rule, especially in light of the upcoming election season, is also advised.13 An adviser should also consider pre-screening new covered person candidates for the applicability of the rule. Finally, it may be helpful to conduct periodic checks of campaign contribution databases, as well as require quarterly pay-to-play compliance reporting. The SEC may bring enforcement actions for even minor foot-fault violations of the rule. Such cases generally result in disgorgement and fines. Compliance with the relevant recordkeeping obligations is also important, as the SEC regularly reviews pay-to-play recordkeeping as part of adviser exams.


The rule applies to all investment advisers registered (or required to be registered) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), or unregistered in reliance on the exemption available under section 203(b)(3) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (Advisers Act) (15 U.S.C. 80b-3(b)(3)), or that is an exempt reporting adviser, as defined in section 275.204-4(a) – which includes venture capital fund advisers and private fund advisers.

A “covered associate” broadly includes (1) a general partner, managing member, executive officer or other individual with a similar status or function; (2) any employee who solicits a governmental entity for the adviser (and any person who supervises, directly or indirectly, such an employee); or (3) a political action committee (PAC) controlled by the adviser or by any of its covered associates.

3 See e.g., In the Matter of Ancora Advisors LLC, SEC Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-18937 (Dec. 18. 2018), found here.

4 The definition of “contribution” is broad and encompasses any gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money or anything of value made for (1) the purpose of influencing any election for federal, state or local office; (2) payment of debt incurred in connection with any such election; or (3) transition or inaugural expenses of the successful candidate for state or local office.

5 An “official” means any person (including any election committee for the person) who was, at the time of the contribution, an incumbent, candidate or successful candidate for elective office of a government entity, if the office: (1) is directly or indirectly responsible for, or can influence the outcome of, the hiring of an adviser by a government entity; or (2) has authority to appoint any person who is directly or indirectly responsible for, or can influence the outcome of, the hiring of an investment adviser by a government entity.

A “government entity” means any state or a political subdivision of a state, including: (1) any agency, authority or instrumentality of the state or a political subdivision, (2) a pool of assets sponsored or established by the state or political subdivision or any agency, authority or instrumentality thereof, including, but not limited to a “defined benefit plan” as defined in section 414(j) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 414(j)), or a state general fund; (3) a plan or program of a government entity; and (4) officers, agents, or employees of the state or political subdivision or any agency, authority or instrumentality thereof, acting in their official capacity.

7 “Covered investment pool” means: (1) an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (Investment Company Act) that is an investment option of a plan or program of a government entity; or (2) any company that would be an investment company under section 3(a) of the Investment Company Act, but for the exclusion provided from that definition by either section 3(c)(1), 3(c)(7) or 3(c)(11) of that Act.

8  “Payment” means any gift, subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value.

9  “Solicit” means: (1) with respect to investment advisory services, to communicate, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of obtaining or retaining a client for, or referring a client to, an adviser; and (2) with respect to a contribution or payment, to communicate, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of obtaining or arranging a contribution or payment.

10 “Regulated person” means: (1) a registered investment adviser that has not (and whose covered persons have not) made, coordinated or solicited a contribution within the last two years that would violate the rule; (2) a broker-dealer that is a member of a registered national securities association, so long as such association’s rules prohibit members from engaging in distribution or solicitation activities after making political contributions and the SEC finds, by order, that such rules are at least substantially equivalent to the restrictions imposed on advisers under the rule; and (3) municipal advisors registered under section 15B of the Securities Exchange Act of 1933 and subject to pay to play rules adopted by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB), provided that the MSRB rules: A) impose substantially equivalent or more stringent restrictions on municipal advisors than the pay to play rule imposes on investment advisers and B) are consistent with the objectives of the pay to play rule.

11 Staff Responses to Questions about the Pay to Play Rule.

12 The rule outlines a number of factors that the SEC will consider, including an assessment of the adviser’s compliance environment, the nature of the contribution and the covered associate’s intent in making the contribution. Since the rule’s adoption, the SEC has granted 16 exemptive orders. See e.g. In the Matter of D.B. Fitzpatrick & Co., Inc., Investment Advisers Act Release No. 5496 (May 5, 2020) (order), found here; D.B. Fitzpatrick & Co., Inc., Investment Advisers Act Release No. 5475 (Apr. 9, 2020) (notice of application), found here; In the Matter of D.B. Fitzpatrick & Co., Inc., File No. 803-253 (Apr. 9, 2020) (application), found here.

13 For example, even though the rule applies to advisers seeking to influence state and local entities and not federal entities, if a state office holder that has influence over the selection of investment advisers, which could include a sitting state governor, were to be nominated as a Vice Presidential running mate, contributions to that ticket could implicate the rule.

Authors
Nicole Kalajian
Aliza Dominey
Sara Crovitz

1940 Act Issues to Consider During the Pandemic – Part 10

Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force will be updating this high-level overview of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related issues for registered investment companies and fund managers as developments warrant.

UPDATED ISSUES:

  • Market Closures and Market Restrictions: A list of securities market closures and market restrictions is available here(Updated 6/1/2020)
  • Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has established the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), which will provide non-recourse funding to eligible borrowers owning eligible collateral in the form of AAA-rated asset-backed securities backed by newly and recently originated consumer and small business loans.1 A TALF borrower must have significant operations in and a majority of its employees based in the United States. The New York Fed has provided guidance that, for a borrower organized as an investment fund, this test will be applied to the borrower’s investment manager.2 The facility initially will make up to $100 billion of loans available, and each loan provided under the facility will have a maturity of three years. Unless the program is extended, no new credit extensions will be made after Sept. 30, 2020. The staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2009 provided no-action guidance to allow registered funds to participate in a similar facility established in 2008.3 The SEC staff has confirmed that the 2009 guidance is also applicable to the current facility, and it has provided guidance that a fund or business development company may participate in TALF indirectly through a private fund.4 (Updated 6/1/2020)
  • Transfer Agents and Fingerprinting Requirements: The SEC has provided a broad exemption from requirements applicable to transfer agents except for the safeguarding requirement.5 The exemption also applies to broker-dealers and other persons who are subject to a fingerprinting requirement. Transfer agents and other persons relying on the relief must provide notice to the SEC. The SEC encourages transfer agents and the issuers for whom they act to inform affected security holders. The SEC has extended the period covered by the exemption to June 30; it originally was due to expire May 31.6 (Updated 6/1/2020)
  • Exchange-Traded Funds:
    • The New York Fed has established the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF), which will purchase in the secondary market corporate bonds issued by U.S. companies and shares of U.S.-listed ETFs whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds.7 The New York Fed has retained BlackRock Financial Markets Advisory as a third-party vendor to serve as the investment manager for this facility.8 The SMCCF will cease making such purchases no later than Sept. 30, 2020, unless extended. The Federal Reserve Board announced on April 9 that the SMCCF had been expanded and, together with the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility, will have a combined size of up to $750 billion.9 The SMCCF may purchase any U.S.-listed ETF whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds, although the preponderance of ETF holdings will be ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds. The SMCCF will not purchase shares of an ETF if it then would own more than 20% of the ETF’s shares. The facility began making purchases on May 12, 2020, and is transacting initially with primary dealers that deal directly with the New York Fed. As of May 19, the SMCCF had made purchases of approximately $1.307 billion, all in ETFs, and it had an additional $287 million of purchases that had not yet reached settlement.10 (Updated 6/1/2020)
    • For an ETF that invests in foreign markets that close, the ETF may wish to consider whether to invest in alternative instruments, such as ADRs, in order to achieve the desired exposure to the foreign securities. In circumstances where there is no ability to make additional investments in appropriate alternative instruments, an ETF may wish to stop accepting creation unit purchases. The SEC previously has noted that ETFs generally may suspend the issuance of creation units only for a limited time and only due to extraordinary circumstances, such as when the markets on which the ETF’s portfolio holdings are traded are closed for a limited period of time.11 ETF issuers should be aware that any decision to suspend creations could have an impact on the arbitrage efficiency of the ETF and could lead to greater deviations between the market price of the ETF shares and the NAV of the shares. Like other open-end funds, ETFs cannot suspend redemptions unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed or there is appropriate guidance from the SEC. ETFs are permitted to charge transaction fees of up to 2% on redemptions. Such fees are designed to offset the costs of redemptions to the ETF. Some fixed-income ETFs that deliver cash redemptions instead of in-kind redemptions reportedly have increased their transaction fees on redemptions in light of increased transaction costs in the bond market. (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Money Market Mutual Funds:
    • Liquidity Facility: The Federal Reserve Board has announced a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) that is intended to assist money market funds in meeting demands for redemptions.12 Under the MMLF, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston will lend to depository institutions and bank holding companies, taking as collateral assets purchased by the borrower from prime money market funds (i) concurrently with the borrowing or (ii) or on or after March 18, but before the opening of the facility. The facility is similar to the Asset-Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility that operated from late 2008 to early 2010 but will purchase a broader range of assets. The Federal Reserve Board expanded the facility to cover certain assets purchased from tax-exempt municipal money market funds.13 The Federal Reserve Board has announced that the facility opened March 23, and full documentation and additional guidance are available.14 As of May 14, 2020, the total outstanding amount of the loans under the facility was approximately $39.4 billion (down from $51.1 billion as of April 14).15 (Updated 6/1/2020)
    • Form N-CR: Several money market funds filed on Form N-CR in March to report financial support, and one money market fund filed on Form N-CR in March to report downward deviations of its shadow price by more than ¼ of 1%. An amended report is required to be filed within four business days of the provision of financial support or downward deviation that describes the reason for the support and terms of the support or the reason for the deviation, as applicable. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Purchases by Affiliated Banks: The Federal Reserve Board has issued a template exemptive letter allowing banks to purchase assets from affiliated money market funds, subject to certain conditions, including that the assets must be investment grade and purchased at fair market value.16 In addition, the SEC staff has granted no-action relief to permit certain bank affiliates of money market funds to purchase securities from the funds in accordance with the Federal Reserve Board guidance, but otherwise pursuant to rule 17a-9, subject to certain conditions.17 The SEC no-action letter does not affect the ability of other money market fund affiliates to purchase assets from the fund in accordance with rule 17a-9. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Guaranty: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), which was enacted into law on March 27, suspends the existing prohibition on the use of the Exchange Stabilization Fund for the establishment of any guaranty programs for the money market fund industry.18 Any such guarantee shall be limited to a guarantee of the total value of a shareholder’s account in a participating fund as of the close of business on the day before the announcement of the guarantee and terminate not later than Dec. 31, 2020. This provision allows the Department of the Treasury to establish a Money Market Funds Guaranty Program but does not require it to do so. (Updated 3/31/2020)

ISSUES:

  • Paycheck Protection Program: The Paycheck Protection Program authorizes forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees during the COVID-19 crisis.19 Borrowers submitting a PPP application must certify that current economic uncertainty makes this loan request necessary to support the ongoing operations of the applicant. The Small Business Administration, which implements the program, has announced that any borrower that, together with its affiliates, received PPP loans with an original principal amount of less than $2 million will be deemed to have made the required certification in good faith. Hedge funds and private equity funds are not eligible for PPP loans, but their portfolio companies may be able to qualify.20 The SEC staff has provided guidance that an advisory firm that receives a PPP loan may be required to disclose the loan and its financial condition to clients.21 (New 5/15/2020)
  • Division of Investment Management Statement: The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has issued a statement emphasizing the ongoing importance of updating and delivering the required information to fund investors in a timely manner, even during this period of operational challenge.22 The statement reminds funds of the obligation to update prospectuses and deliver them to new investors,23 and it encourages funds to consider whether disclosures should be revised based on how COVID-19-related events may affect the fund and its investors. (New 4/20/2020)
  • Closed-End Funds: A closed-end fund is required to suspend its offering of shares until it amends its prospectus if the fund’s net asset value declines more than 10% from the NAV as of the effective date of the registration statement. The SEC staff has released guidance allowing the use of a prospectus supplement, with notice to the SEC staff, rather than an amendment to the registration statement.24 (New 4/20/2020)
  • Shareholder Meetings: The SEC staff has provided guidance to both operating companies and funds that is intended to provide regulatory flexibility to companies seeking to change the date and location of shareholders meetings and to use new technologies, such as “virtual” shareholder meetings that avoid the need for in-person shareholder attendance, while at the same time ensuring that shareholders and other market participants are informed of any changes.25 The guidance notes that the ability to conduct a “virtual” meeting is governed by state law, where permitted, and the issuer’s governing documents. Note that companies seeking to conduct a virtual meeting may, under state law, need to have an appropriate process for shareholders to vote at the meeting. The guidance has been revised to extend to special meetings as well as annual meetings and to provide further guidance on notice requirements. (Updated 4/20/2020)
  • Business Development Companies: The SEC has provided limited and conditional exemptive relief for business development companies that provides additional flexibility to BDCs to issue and sell senior securities.26 In addition, for BDCs with an SEC order permitting co-investment transactions with certain affiliates, the SEC relief allows the BDC to participate in certain follow-on investments with regulated funds and affiliated funds. The relief is available until Dec. 31, 2020. (New 4/13/2020)
  • Regulation BI/Form CRS: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton has announced that the SEC believes that the June 30, 2020, compliance date for Regulation Best Interest and other requirements, including the requirement to file and begin delivering Form CRS, remains appropriate.27 To the extent that a firm is unable to make certain filings or meet other requirements because of disruptions caused by COVID-19, including as a result of efforts to comply with national, state or local health and safety directives and guidance, the firm should engage with the SEC. The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued two Risk Alerts that provide broker-dealers and investment advisers with advance information about the expected scope and content of the initial examinations for compliance with Regulation BI and Form CRS,28 and FINRA has provided guidance on best practices in preparing for Regulation BI.29 The SEC staff has announced that it is now accepting filings on Form CRS.30 (Updated 4/13/2020)
  • Paper Submissions: Although most SEC filings are now made electronically via EDGAR, there are still some submissions that normally must be submitted in paper form.
    • The SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets has announced relief for certain submissions that are required to be filed in paper format with a manual signature and for related notarization requirements.31 The affected filings include audited annual reports submitted by broker-dealers. Filers should contact Division staff to discuss the appropriate process for filing. The staff statement covers submissions for the period from and including March 16, 2020, to June 30, 2020. (New 4/7/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance has announced that notices of proposed sales of securities on Form 144 may be filed via email and, subject to certain conditions, may have a typed form of signature rather than a manual signature.32 (New 4/13/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has announced that requests for hearing applications on notices of applications for exemptive orders under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 must be submitted by email.33 (New 4/13/2020)
  • Accounting Issues: SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia has announced that the SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant recognizes that the accounting and financial reporting implications of COVID-19 may require companies to make significant judgments and estimates in a number of accounting areas, including fair value and impairment considerations.34 The OCA has consistently not objected to well-reasoned judgments that entities have made, and it will continue to apply this perspective. The OCA remains available for consultation and encourages stakeholders to contact it with questions they encounter as a result of COVID-19. (New 4/7/2020)
  • Affiliated Purchases of Debt Securities: The SEC staff has issued no-action relief to affiliates of open-end funds, other than exchange-traded funds and money market funds, to allow them to purchase debt securities from the funds.35 The relief is subject to conditions, including that the price must be the security’s fair market value per Section 2(a)(41) of the 1940 Act, provided that this price is not materially different from the value indicated by a reliable third-party pricing service, and that the fund must publicly disclose the purchase on its website and inform the staff. In addition, if the purchaser thereafter sells the security for a higher price, it must promptly pay the difference to the fund, unless the purchaser is a bank or bank affiliate and this condition would conflict with Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. The relief will be in effect until further notice from the staff. (New 3/31/2020)
  • SEC Lending and Borrowing Relief: The SEC has issued an order providing additional flexibility for open-end funds (other than money market funds) and insurance company separate accounts registered as unit investment trusts to obtain short-term funding.36 The relief is available until a notice terminating it is issued, which will be at least two weeks from the date of the notice and no earlier than June 30, 2020. Prior to relying on any of the relief, the fund would have to notify SEC staff. In addition, interfund lending requires notification on a fund’s public website.
    • Fund affiliates may lend money to the fund on a collateralized basis, provided the board makes determinations that the borrowing is in the best interest of the fund and its shareholders and that it will be for the purposes of satisfying shareholder redemptions.
    • For fund families with an SEC order permitting an interfund lending and borrowing facility, a lending fund may lend up to 25% of its current net assets and the term may be for any period that does not extend beyond the expiration of the relief, notwithstanding the terms of the order, provided, among other conditions, that the board reasonably determines that the maximum term for interfund loans is appropriate. (Recent orders typically limit lending funds to 15% of current net assets and the term to seven days.)
    • For fund families without an interfund lending order, funds may lend and borrow in accordance with the terms of any such order issued within the past twelve months, with the same modifications.37
    • Funds are not required to seek shareholder approval if lending under the relief would violate a fundamental policy, provided that the board reasonably determines that the lending or borrowing is in the best interests of the fund and its shareholders. (New 3/27/2020)
  • OCIE Statement: The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued a statement that it has moved to conduct examinations off-site through correspondence unless it is absolutely necessary to be on-site, and that it will work with registrants to ensure that its work can be conducted in a manner consistent with maintaining normal operations and with necessary or appropriate health and safety measures.38 OCIE also stated that reliance on regulatory relief would not be a risk factor utilized in determining whether OCIE commences an examination, and it encourages registrants to utilize available regulatory relief as needed. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Signatures on EDGAR Filings: The SEC staff has issued a statement on the manual signature and record requirements for documents filed electronically with the SEC.39 The staff will not recommend enforcement action if a signatory retains a document adopting the signature and provides the document to the filer for retention, with the time and date executed, and the filer establishes and maintains policies and procedures governing this process. (New 3/27/2020)
  • FINRA Guidance: FINRA has issued guidance that provides temporary relief and guidance with respect to a number of requirements, including filings that would otherwise be required for temporary relocations and the timing of FOCUS reports and certain other filings.40 The guidance will be available until FINRA publishes a Regulatory Notice announcing a termination date. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Blue Sky Guidance: A number of state and provincial securities regulators have published guidance that provides relief or other COVID-19-related updates. The North American Securities Administrators Association has established a resource page to collect these updates.41 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • SEC Filings: The SEC has updated its previous orders under both the 1940 Act and the Investment Advisers Act to extend the time periods of the relief.42 Entities must notify the SEC staff and/or investors, as applicable, of the intent to rely on the relief, but generally no longer need to describe why they are relying on the order or estimate a date by which the required action will occur. The 1940 Act Orders provide relief from the timeliness requirements of Form N-CEN, Form N-PORT, and Form N-23C-2 when a fund is unable to meet a deadline due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. The relief for Forms N-CEN and N-PORT applies to filing obligations for which the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, while the relief for Form N-23C-2 extends to Aug. 15, 2020. The Advisers Act Orders provide timeliness relief for Form ADV and Form PF filings and for Form ADV Part 2 client delivery obligations for 45 days from the original due date, when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020. The SEC previously posted staff guidance that Form ADV does not have to be updated to reflect temporary teleworking locations.43 The SEC has also provided relief from timeliness requirements for certain filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.44 Note that filings not covered by the orders continue to be required on a timely basis, including filings on Form N-LIQUID, Form N-CR, and Form N-MFP, although it is possible that the SEC will consider issues with these forms on an individualized basis. The SEC provided information on contacting the staff with issues, including issues with these filings, in press releases announcing the actions.45 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • In-Person Board Meetings: The 1940 Act Orders allow fund boards to meet telephonically or by video conference to consider and vote on matters that would otherwise require an in-person vote. The relief applies whenever reliance upon it is necessary or appropriate due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19 and is available until Aug. 15, 2020. The SEC’s Division of Investment Management previously provided no-action relief for the period from March 4 to June 15.46 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports: The 1940 Act Orders also provide relief from the obligations to timely transmit annual and semiannual reports to shareholders and to file them with the SEC. The relief applies when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, and the fund is unable to prepare or transmit the report due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. In addition, the SEC announced that it would not provide a basis for an SEC enforcement action if a fund does not timely deliver a current prospectus because of circumstances related to COVID-19 when delivery was originally required during this period. The position is not available to an initial purchase by the investor of the fund’s shares. (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • State and Local Closures: Many states, counties and cities have announced business closures in connection with “shelter-in-place” public health efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19. Some of the orders may contain broad exceptions for the financial services industry, while others may not. Beyond the direct impact on firms in those localities, review the location of service providers and the terms of these orders carefully to determine whether necessary support functions will remain available. FINRA has posted a resource page with links to state “shelter-in-place” and “stay-at-home” orders.47 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Tax Implications for Funds with Institutional Shareholders: For institutional funds with few shareholders, beware that the fund could fall into personal holding company status if at any time during the last half of the taxable year more than 50% in value of the fund’s shares are owned, directly or indirectly, by or for not more than 5 “individuals.” For purposes of this rule, employee pension trusts, private foundations, trusts forming part of a plan providing for the payment of supplemental unemployment compensation benefits, and a trust, a portion of which is permanently set aside or to be used exclusively for charitable purposes, are considered individuals. (New 3/23/2020)
  • CPO NFA Filings: The CFTC staff has provided no-action relief to commodity pool operators that extends certain filing deadlines.48 With respect to Form CPO-PQR filings under CFTC Regulation 4.27, Small and Mid-Sized CPOs have until May 15, 2020, to submit their annual filings for 2019, while Large CPOs have until July 15, 2020, to submit their filings for Q1 2020. For pool annual reports under CFTC Regulations 4.7(b)(3) or 4.22(c) that are due on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for filing and distributing the report, which must include certified financial statements, has been extended until 45 days after the due date specified in the regulations. For monthly or quarterly reports to pool participants under CFTC Regulation 4.7(b)(2) or 4.22(b) for all reporting periods ending on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for distribution to participants has been extended to 45 days after the end of the reporting period (instead of 30 days as stated in the regulations). The National Futures Association has issued similar relief for CPO Members and has provided Commodity Trading Advisor Members with similar relief for NFA Form PR filings.49 (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Liquidity Risk Management: Current developments raise a number of issues for the management of funds’ liquidity risk:
    • Assessment, management, and periodic review of liquidity risk: Funds should review fund liquidity risk in light of current and reasonably expected market events and redemption patterns and may need to consider appropriate mitigating steps for strengthening the fund’s ability to meet redemptions, including readying borrowing and other liquidity facilities. Some fund managers may wish to consider use of the relief provided by the SEC and its staff for affiliated transactions.
    • Classification of portfolio investments: Rule 22e-4 requires funds to review their portfolio investments’ liquidity classifications more frequently than monthly if changes in relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations are reasonably expected to materially affect classifications. Such reviews should focus especially on holdings that could be considered illiquid investments as a result of these developments or that could fall out of highly liquid investment status. An important consideration will be a review of the reasonably anticipated trading sizes in light of redemption expectations. Funds should be alert to the possibility that vendor classifications may be based on historical rather than current data.
    • Highly liquid investment minimum: For funds that currently hold primarily highly liquid assets, and therefore are not required to have an HLIM, the program administrator may need to examine whether the fund can still qualify for that status. For HLIM funds, the HLIM may need to be reviewed under the required factors in light of current market and redemption developments and, if a shortfall is reasonably anticipated, a shortfall response plan should be developed, which must include a plan for reporting shortfalls to the fund’s board.
    • Illiquid investments: During this period of extreme market volatility, the fund should monitor closely whether there is a need to reclassify holdings as illiquid investments. Funds should be prepared to file Form N-LIQUID if the fund’s illiquid assets exceed 15% of its net assets. The program administrator should have guidance designed to prevent purchases that would violate the prohibition on acquiring illiquid investments when over the 15% limit. We do not yet know if the SEC will provide guidance relieving funds from filing Form N-LIQUID in the event of foreign or other market closings that are beyond the scope of existing guidance on extended foreign holidays.
    • Redemptions in kind: Funds may wish to consider whether redemptions in kind would be an appropriate tool for large redemption requests, including whether operational logistics are in place to accommodate any such redemption requests. (Updated 3/19/2020)
  • MiFID II Reporting: Under the MiFID II delegated regulation, investment firms providing the service of portfolio management and subject to MiFID II must inform the client where the overall value of the portfolio, as evaluated at the beginning of each reporting period, depreciates by 10% and thereafter at multiples of 10%, no later than the end of the business day in which the threshold is exceeded or, in a case where the threshold is exceeded on a non-business day, the close of the next business day.50 (New 3/19/2020)
  • Fund Boards: Fund directors should stay up to speed on current market events so they can properly apply their business judgment as necessary from a governance standpoint. In many cases, fund boards are receiving periodic status reports or attending status updates from fund advisers. Examples of areas for directors to consider include, for funds, fund flows, liquidity levels, valuation, and performance; and for fund advisers, status of operations under business continuity plans, market assessments, and the assessment of critical fund service providers. Board reporting from fund advisers is particularly important during times of market stress. To strike an appropriate balance between staying apprised and being efficient and respectful of fund advisory personnel time, boards may seek to channel questions or communications through independent counsel or the board chair/lead independent director. (New 3/19/2020)
  • Business Continuity Plans: Business continuity at the current time is key. In most cases, those plans already are in effect. Consideration should be given to contingency planning in the event that fund managers, transfer agents, pricing services, or other service providers are unable to provide services because of employee absences. Funds and fund managers should make and communicate revisions to their plans as they adjust to the developing environment.
  • Valuation: Funds should examine whether they are able to obtain valid prices for their investments, especially in markets that may be closed or have limited availability. Experience from the 2008 financial crisis shows that vendor reassurances as to the quality of their pricing information may provide false comfort, so vendor prices should be checked for reliability. At this time, we do not expect the SEC to provide relief from the daily pricing requirement.
  • Redemptions: Under Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act, open-end funds generally may not suspend the right of redemption unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed, or the SEC provides guidance that daily redemptions are not required because trading is restricted or an emergency exists. At this point, funds should assume that they must continue to provide daily redemptions. Funds should review any borrowing arrangements that may need to be utilized. We are closely monitoring for any relevant guidance from the SEC or its staff on this topic.
  • Cybersecurity: Firms are at increased risk of cyberattacks, particularly with the use of remote offices and telework. Anxious employees may be more vulnerable to email phishing attacks. Employees should be reminded of the continued need for vigilance.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your Stradley Ronon contact, or to any member of Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force, with any questions and concerns you may have during this period. You can reach Sara Crovitz at 202.507.6414 or scrovitz@stradley.com, or John Baker at 202.419.8413 or jbaker@stradley.com.


1 Policy Tools: Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/talf.htm.

3 Franklin Templeton Investments, SEC No-Action Letter (June 19, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/franklintempleton061909.htm. Stradley Ronon acted as counsel for this no-action request.

4 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (May 27, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/ici-sifma-052720. The guidance on participating through a special purpose vehicle makes generally available to funds and BDCs a 2009 no-action position that originally was available only to the requesting party. See T. Rowe Price Associates, SEC No-Action Letter (Oct. 8, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/troweprice100809.htm.

5 Release No. 34-88448 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88448.pdf.

Release No. 34-88960 (May 27, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88960.pdf.

Policy Tools: Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/smccf.htm.

9 Press Release, Federal Reserve takes additional actions to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200409a.htm.

10 Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (May 28, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/pmccf-smccf-talf-5-29-20.pdf. The Federal Reserve Board is making publicly available detailed information on its transactions and holdings under the facility. See SMCCF Transaction-specific Disclosures (May 29, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/files/smccf-transition-specific-disclosures-5-29-20.xlsx.

11 Release Nos. 33-10695, IC-33646 (Sept. 25, 2019), 84 Fed. Reg. 57162, 57178 (Oct. 24, 2019), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2019-21250.

12  Press Release, Federal Reserve Board broadens program of support for the flow of credit to households and businesses by establishing a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) (Mar. 18, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200318a.htm.

13 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board expands its program of support for flow of credit to the economy by taking steps to enhance liquidity and functioning of crucial state and municipal money markets (Mar. 20, 2020) https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200320b.htm.

14 Policy Tools: Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/mmlf.htm.

15 Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (May 23, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/files/pdcf-cpff-mmlf-5-24-20.pdfsee also Periodic Report: Update on Outstanding Lending Facilities Authorized by the Board under Section 13(3) of the Federal Reserve Act (Apr. 23, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/pdcf-mmlf-and-cpff-4-24-20.pdf.

16 Money Market Mutual Funds Template Letter (Mar. 17, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/legalinterpretations/fedreserseactint20200317.pdf.

17 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 19, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-031920-17a.

18 H.R. 748, § 4015, 116th Cong. (2020), https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr748/BILLS-116hr748enr.pdf.

20 Business Loan Program Temporary Changes; Paycheck Protection Program—Requirements—Promissory Notes, Authorizations, Affiliation, and Eligibility, 85 Fed. Reg. 23450, 23451 (Apr. 28, 2020), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2020-09098.

21 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A II.4, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

22 SEC Division of Investment Management, Importance of Delivering Timely and Material Information to Investment Company Investors (Apr. 14, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/delivering-timely-material-information.

23 As discussed below, the SEC has provided limited conditional relief from the obligation to timely deliver prospectuses to existing shareholders. See infra Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports.

24 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A III.5, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

25 Staff Guidance for Conducting Annual Meetings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocr/staff-guidance-conducting-annual-meetings-light-covid-19-concerns.

26 Release No. IC-33837 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/ic-33837.pdf.

27 SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, Investors Remain Front of Mind at the SEC: Approach to Allocation of Resources, Oversight and Rulemaking; Implementation of Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-clayton-investors-rbi-form-crs.

28 OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert%20Regulation%20Best%20Interest%20Exams.pdf; OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Form CRS (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert%20-%20Form%20CRS%20Exams.pdf.

29 FINRA Highlights Firm Practices from Regulation Best Interest Preparedness Reviews (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/regulation-best-interest/preparedness.

30 Frequently Asked Questions on Form CRS, https://www.sec.gov/investment/form-crs-faq#filing.

31 Division of Trading and Markets Staff Statement Regarding Requirements for Certain Paper Submissions in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/tm/paper-submission-requirements-covid-19.

32 SEC Division of Corporation Finance, Statement Regarding Requirements for Form 144 Paper Filings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 10, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/form-144-paper-filings-email-option.

33 IM Information Update IM-INFO-2020-03 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/im-info-2020-03.pdf.

34 SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia, Statement on the Importance of High-Quality Financial Reporting in Light of the Significant Impacts of COVID-19 (Apr. 3, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-teotia-financial-reporting-covid-19-2020-04-03.

35 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 26, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-032620-17a.

36 Release No. IC-33821 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33821.pdf.

37 Recent interfund lending orders are available at https://www.sec.gov/rules/icreleases.shtml#interfundlending.

38 OCIE Statement on Operations and Exams – Health, Safety, Investor Protection and Continued Operations are our Priorities (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocie/announcement/ocie-statement-operations-health-safety-investor-protection-and-continued.

39 Staff Statement Regarding Rule 302(b) of Regulation S-T in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/staff-statement-regarding-rule-302b-regulation-s-t-light-covid-19-concerns.

40 Frequently Asked Questions Related to Regulatory Relief Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/guidance/faqs/coronavirus. FINRA guidance, updates, and other information on COVID-19 are available at https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19. Other self-regulatory organizations are also providing relief and guidance. See, e.g., Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-021 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-021-Filing-Extensions-for-Annual-Reports-and-FOCUS-Reports.pdf; Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-022 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-022-Extension-of-Time-for-Certain-Filings-Currently-Due-April-1-2020.pdf.

41 Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 Updates, https://www.nasaa.org/industry-resources/covid-19-updates/.

42 For the 1940 Act Orders, see Release No. IC-33824 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33824.pdf; Release No. IC-33817 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33817.pdf. For the Advisers Act Orders, see IA-5469 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5469.pdf; Release No. IA-5463 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5463.pdf. The various forms of relief provided by the SEC are subject to conditions that are set out in the respective orders, such as subsequent ratification of votes, notice to the SEC of filing delays, and website disclosure of issues with the delivery of shareholder reports, prospectuses, and Form ADV client brochures.

44 Release No. 34-88465(Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88465.pdf; Release No. 34-88318 (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/34-88318.pdf.

45 Press Release 2020-73, SEC Extends Conditional Exemptions from Reporting and Proxy Delivery Requirements for Public Companies, Funds, and Investment Advisers Affected by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-73; Press Release 2020-63, SEC Takes Targeted Action to Assist Funds and Advisers, Permits Virtual Board Meetings and Provides Conditional Relief from Certain Filing Procedures (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-63.

46 SEC Division of Investment Management, Staff Statement on Fund Board Meetings and Unforeseen or Emergency Circumstances Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/staff-statement-im-covid-19.

47 State “Shelter-in-Place” and “Stay-at-Home” Orders, https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19/shelter-in-place.

48 Press Release No. 8136-20, CFTC Issues Third Wave of Relief to Market Participants in Response to COVID-19 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8136-20.

49 Notice to Members I-20-15 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.nfa.futures.org/news/newsNotice.asp?ArticleID=5218.

50 European Commission Delegated Regulation art. 62, https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/3/2016/EN/3-2016-2398-EN-F1-1.PDF.

COVID-19 Coverage: Part 9 of 1940 Act Issues to Consider During the Pandemic

Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force will be updating this high-level overview of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related issues for registered investment companies and fund managers as developments warrant.

NEW ISSUES:

  • Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has established the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), which will provide non-recourse funding to eligible borrowers owning eligible collateral in the form of AAA-rated asset-backed securities backed by newly and recently originated consumer and small business loans.1 A TALF borrower must have significant operations in and a majority of its employees based in the United States. The New York Fed has provided guidance that, for a borrower organized as an investment fund, this test will be applied to the borrower’s investment manager.The facility initially will make up to $100 billion of loans available, and each loan provided under the facility will have a maturity of three years. Unless the program is extended, no new credit extensions will be made after Sept. 30, 2020. The staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2009 provided no-action guidance to allow registered funds to participate in a similar facility established in 2008.3 As the master loan and security agreement for the TALF has not been released, it is not yet clear whether the guidance needs to be updated to permit registered funds to participate in TALF. (New 5/15/2020)
  • Paycheck Protection Program: The Paycheck Protection Program authorizes forgivable loans to small businesses to pay their employees during the COVID-19 crisis.4 Borrowers submitting a PPP application must certify that current economic uncertainty makes this loan request necessary to support the ongoing operations of the applicant. The Small Business Administration, which implements the program, has announced that any borrower that, together with its affiliates, received PPP loans with an original principal amount of less than $2 million will be deemed to have made the required certification in good faith. In addition, a borrower that repays the loan in full by May 18, 2020 (extended from May 14), will be deemed to have made the required certification in good faith and will not be subject to audit.5 Hedge funds and private equity funds are not eligible for PPP loans, but their portfolio companies may be able to qualify.The SEC staff has provided guidance that an advisory firm that receives a PPP loan may be required to disclose the loan and its financial condition to clients.(New 5/15/2020)

UPDATED ISSUES:

  • Market Closures and Market Restrictions: A list of securities market closures and market restrictions is available here. (Updated 5/15/2020)
  • Exchange-Traded Funds:
    • The New York Fed has established the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF), which will purchase in the secondary market corporate bonds issued by U.S. companies and shares of U.S.-listed ETFs whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds.The New York Fed has retained BlackRock Financial Markets Advisory as a third-party vendor to serve as the investment manager for this facility.9 The SMCCF will cease making such purchases no later than Sept. 30, 2020, unless extended. The Federal Reserve Board announced on April 9 that the SMCCF had been expanded and, together with the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility, will have a combined size of up to $750 billion.10 The SMCCF may purchase any U.S.-listed ETF whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds, although the preponderance of ETF holdings will be ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds. The SMCCF will not purchase shares of an ETF if it then would own more than 20% of the ETF’s shares. The facility began making purchases on May 12, 2020, and is transacting initially with primary dealers that deal directly with the New York Fed. (Updated 5/15/2020)
    • For an ETF that invests in foreign markets that close, the ETF may wish to consider whether to invest in alternative instruments, such as ADRs, in order to achieve the desired exposure to the foreign securities. In circumstances where there is no ability to make additional investments in appropriate alternative instruments, an ETF may wish to stop accepting creation unit purchases. The SEC previously has noted that ETFs generally may suspend the issuance of creation units only for a limited time and only due to extraordinary circumstances, such as when the markets on which the ETF’s portfolio holdings are traded are closed for a limited period of time.11 ETF issuers should be aware that any decision to suspend creations could have an impact on the arbitrage efficiency of the ETF and could lead to greater deviations between the market price of the ETF shares and the NAV of the shares. Like other open-end funds, ETFs cannot suspend redemptions unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed or there is appropriate guidance from the SEC. ETFs are permitted to charge transaction fees of up to 2% on redemptions. Such fees are designed to offset the costs of redemptions to the ETF. Some fixed-income ETFs that deliver cash redemptions instead of in-kind redemptions reportedly have increased their transaction fees on redemptions in light of increased transaction costs in the bond market. (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Money Market Mutual Funds:
    • Liquidity Facility: The Federal Reserve Board has announced a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) that is intended to assist money market funds in meeting demands for redemptions.12 Under the MMLF, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston will lend to depository institutions and bank holding companies, taking as collateral assets purchased by the borrower from prime money market funds (i) concurrently with the borrowing or (ii) or on or after March 18, but before the opening of the facility. The facility is similar to the Asset-Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility that operated from late 2008 to early 2010 but will purchase a broader range of assets. The Federal Reserve Board expanded the facility to cover certain assets purchased from tax-exempt municipal money market funds.13 The Federal Reserve Board has announced that the facility opened March 23, and full documentation and additional guidance are available.14 As of April 14, 2020, the total outstanding amount of the loans under the facility was approximately $51.1 billion. (Updated 5/15/2020)
    • Form N-CR: Several money market funds filed on Form N-CR in March to report financial support, and one money market fund filed on Form N-CR in March to report downward deviations of its shadow price by more than ¼ of 1%. An amended report is required to be filed within four business days of the provision of financial support or downward deviation that describes the reason for the support and terms of the support or the reason for the deviation, as applicable. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Purchases by Affiliated Banks: The Federal Reserve Board has issued a template exemptive letter allowing banks to purchase assets from affiliated money market funds, subject to certain conditions, including that the assets must be investment grade and purchased at fair market value.15 In addition, the SEC staff has granted no-action relief to permit certain bank affiliates of money market funds to purchase securities from the funds in accordance with the Federal Reserve Board guidance, but otherwise pursuant to rule 17a-9, subject to certain conditions.16 The SEC no-action letter does not affect the ability of other money market fund affiliates to purchase assets from the fund in accordance with rule 17a-9. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Guaranty: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), which was enacted into law on March 27, suspends the existing prohibition on the use of the Exchange Stabilization Fund for the establishment of any guaranty programs for the money market fund industry.17 Any such guarantee shall be limited to a guarantee of the total value of a shareholder’s account in a participating fund as of the close of business on the day before the announcement of the guarantee and terminate not later than Dec. 31, 2020. This provision allows the Department of the Treasury to establish a Money Market Funds Guaranty Program but does not require it to do so. (Updated 3/31/2020)

ISSUES:

  • Division of Investment Management Statement: The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has issued a statement emphasizing the ongoing importance of updating and delivering the required information to fund investors in a timely manner, even during this period of operational challenge.18 The statement reminds funds of the obligation to update prospectuses and deliver them to new investors,19 and it encourages funds to consider whether disclosures should be revised based on how COVID-19-related events may affect the fund and its investors. (New 4/20/2020)
  • Closed-End Funds: A closed-end fund is required to suspend its offering of shares until it amends its prospectus if the fund’s net asset value declines more than 10% from the NAV as of the effective date of the registration statement. The SEC staff has released guidance allowing the use of a prospectus supplement, with notice to the SEC staff, rather than an amendment to the registration statement.20 (New 4/20/2020)
  • Shareholder Meetings: The SEC staff has provided guidance to both operating companies and funds that is intended to provide regulatory flexibility to companies seeking to change the date and location of shareholders meetings and to use new technologies, such as “virtual” shareholder meetings that avoid the need for in-person shareholder attendance, while at the same time ensuring that shareholders and other market participants are informed of any changes.21 The guidance notes that the ability to conduct a “virtual” meeting is governed by state law, where permitted, and the issuer’s governing documents. Note that companies seeking to conduct a virtual meeting may, under state law, need to have an appropriate process for shareholders to vote at the meeting. The guidance has been revised to extend to special meetings as well as annual meetings and to provide further guidance on notice requirements. (Updated 4/20/2020)
  • Business Development Companies: The SEC has provided limited and conditional exemptive relief for business development companies that provides additional flexibility to BDCs to issue and sell senior securities.22 In addition, for BDCs with an SEC order permitting co-investment transactions with certain affiliates, the SEC relief allows the BDC to participate in certain follow-on investments with regulated funds and affiliated funds. The relief is available until Dec. 31, 2020. (New 4/13/2020)
  • Regulation BI/Form CRS: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton has announced that the SEC believes that the June 30, 2020, compliance date for Regulation Best Interest and other requirements, including the requirement to file and begin delivering Form CRS, remains appropriate.23 To the extent that a firm is unable to make certain filings or meet other requirements because of disruptions caused by COVID-19, including as a result of efforts to comply with national, state or local health and safety directives and guidance, the firm should engage with the SEC. The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued two Risk Alerts that provide broker-dealers and investment advisers with advance information about the expected scope and content of the initial examinations for compliance with Regulation BI and Form CRS,24 and FINRA has provided guidance on best practices in preparing for Regulation BI.25 The SEC staff has announced that it is now accepting filings on Form CRS.26 (Updated 4/13/2020)
  • Paper Submissions: Although most SEC filings are now made electronically via EDGAR, there are still some submissions that normally must be submitted in paper form.
    • The SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets has announced relief for certain submissions that are required to be filed in paper format with a manual signature and for related notarization requirements.27 The affected filings include audited annual reports submitted by broker-dealers. Filers should contact Division staff to discuss the appropriate process for filing. The staff statement covers submissions for the period from and including March 16, 2020, to June 30, 2020. (New 4/7/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance has announced that notices of proposed sales of securities on Form 144 may be filed via email and, subject to certain conditions, may have a typed form of signature rather than a manual signature.28 (New 4/13/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has announced that requests for hearing applications on notices of applications for exemptive orders under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 must be submitted by email.29 (New 4/13/2020)
  • Accounting Issues: SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia has announced that the SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant recognizes that the accounting and financial reporting implications of COVID-19 may require companies to make significant judgments and estimates in a number of accounting areas, including fair value and impairment considerations.30 The OCA has consistently not objected to well-reasoned judgments that entities have made, and it will continue to apply this perspective. The OCA remains available for consultation and encourages stakeholders to contact it with questions they encounter as a result of COVID-19. (New 4/7/2020)
  • Affiliated Purchases of Debt Securities: The SEC staff has issued no-action relief to affiliates of open-end funds, other than exchange-traded funds and money market funds, to allow them to purchase debt securities from the funds.31 The relief is subject to conditions, including that the price must be the security’s fair market value per Section 2(a)(41) of the 1940 Act, provided that this price is not materially different from the value indicated by a reliable third-party pricing service, and that the fund must publicly disclose the purchase on its website and inform the staff. In addition, if the purchaser thereafter sells the security for a higher price, it must promptly pay the difference to the fund, unless the purchaser is a bank or bank affiliate and this condition would conflict with Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. The relief will be in effect until further notice from the staff. (New 3/31/2020)
  • SEC Lending and Borrowing Relief: The SEC has issued an order providing additional flexibility for open-end funds (other than money market funds) and insurance company separate accounts registered as unit investment trusts to obtain short-term funding.32 The relief is available until a notice terminating it is issued, which will be at least two weeks from the date of the notice and no earlier than June 30, 2020. Prior to relying on any of the relief, the fund would have to notify SEC staff. In addition, interfund lending requires notification on a fund’s public website.
    • Fund affiliates may lend money to the fund on a collateralized basis, provided the board makes determinations that the borrowing is in the best interest of the fund and its shareholders and that it will be for the purposes of satisfying shareholder redemptions.
    • For fund families with an SEC order permitting an interfund lending and borrowing facility, a lending fund may lend up to 25% of its current net assets and the term may be for any period that does not extend beyond the expiration of the relief, notwithstanding the terms of the order, provided, among other conditions, that the board reasonably determines that the maximum term for interfund loans is appropriate. (Recent orders typically limit lending funds to 15% of current net assets and the term to seven days.)
    • For fund families without an interfund lending order, funds may lend and borrow in accordance with the terms of any such order issued within the past twelve months, with the same modifications.33
    • Funds are not required to seek shareholder approval if lending under the relief would violate a fundamental policy, provided that the board reasonably determines that the lending or borrowing is in the best interests of the fund and its shareholders. (New 3/27/2020)
  • OCIE Statement: The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued a statement that it has moved to conduct examinations off-site through correspondence unless it is absolutely necessary to be on-site, and that it will work with registrants to ensure that its work can be conducted in a manner consistent with maintaining normal operations and with necessary or appropriate health and safety measures.34 OCIE also stated that reliance on regulatory relief would not be a risk factor utilized in determining whether OCIE commences an examination, and it encourages registrants to utilize available regulatory relief as needed. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Signatures on EDGAR Filings: The SEC staff has issued a statement on the manual signature and record requirements for documents filed electronically with the SEC.35 The staff will not recommend enforcement action if a signatory retains a document adopting the signature and provides the document to the filer for retention, with the time and date executed, and the filer establishes and maintains policies and procedures governing this process. (New 3/27/2020)
  • FINRA Guidance: FINRA has issued guidance that provides temporary relief and guidance with respect to a number of requirements, including filings that would otherwise be required for temporary relocations and the timing of FOCUS reports and certain other filings.36 The guidance will be available until FINRA publishes a Regulatory Notice announcing a termination date. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Blue Sky Guidance: A number of state and provincial securities regulators have published guidance that provides relief or other COVID-19-related updates. The North American Securities Administrators Association has established a resource page to collect these updates.37 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • SEC Filings: The SEC has updated its previous orders under both the 1940 Act and the Investment Advisers Act to extend the time periods of the relief.38 Entities must notify the SEC staff and/or investors, as applicable, of the intent to rely on the relief, but generally no longer need to describe why they are relying on the order or estimate a date by which the required action will occur. The 1940 Act Orders provide relief from the timeliness requirements of Form N-CEN, Form N-PORT, and Form N-23C-2 when a fund is unable to meet a deadline due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. The relief for Forms N-CEN and N-PORT applies to filing obligations for which the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, while the relief for Form N-23C-2 extends to Aug. 15, 2020. The Advisers Act Orders provide timeliness relief for Form ADV and Form PF filings and for Form ADV Part 2 client delivery obligations for 45 days from the original due date, when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020. The SEC previously posted staff guidance that Form ADV does not have to be updated to reflect temporary teleworking locations.39 The SEC has also provided relief from timeliness requirements for certain filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.40 Note that filings not covered by the orders continue to be required on a timely basis, including filings on Form N-LIQUID, Form N-CR, and Form N-MFP, although it is possible that the SEC will consider issues with these forms on an individualized basis. The SEC provided information on contacting the staff with issues, including issues with these filings, in press releases announcing the actions.41 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • In-Person Board Meetings: The 1940 Act Orders allow fund boards to meet telephonically or by video conference to consider and vote on matters that would otherwise require an in-person vote. The relief applies whenever reliance upon it is necessary or appropriate due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19 and is available until Aug. 15, 2020. The SEC’s Division of Investment Management previously provided no-action relief for the period from March 4 to June 15.42 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports: The 1940 Act Orders also provide relief from the obligations to timely transmit annual and semiannual reports to shareholders and to file them with the SEC. The relief applies when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, and the fund is unable to prepare or transmit the report due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. In addition, the SEC announced that it would not provide a basis for an SEC enforcement action if a fund does not timely deliver a current prospectus because of circumstances related to COVID-19 when delivery was originally required during this period. The position is not available to an initial purchase by the investor of the fund’s shares. (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • State and Local Closures: Many states, counties and cities have announced business closures in connection with “shelter-in-place” public health efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19. Some of the orders may contain broad exceptions for the financial services industry, while others may not. Beyond the direct impact on firms in those localities, review the location of service providers and the terms of these orders carefully to determine whether necessary support functions will remain available. FINRA has posted a resource page with links to state “shelter-in-place” and “stay-at-home” orders.43 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Transfer Agents: The SEC has provided a broad exemption for the period from March 16 to May 30 from requirements applicable to transfer agents except for the safeguarding requirement.44 Transfer agents relying on the relief must provide notice to the SEC by May 30. The SEC encourages transfer agents and the issuers for whom they act to inform affected security holders. (New 3/23/2020)
  • Tax Implications for Funds with Institutional Shareholders: For institutional funds with few shareholders, beware that the fund could fall into personal holding company status if at any time during the last half of the taxable year more than 50% in value of the fund’s shares are owned, directly or indirectly, by or for not more than 5 “individuals.” For purposes of this rule, employee pension trusts, private foundations, trusts forming part of a plan providing for the payment of supplemental unemployment compensation benefits, and a trust, a portion of which is permanently set aside or to be used exclusively for charitable purposes, are considered individuals. (New 3/23/2020)
  • CPO NFA Filings: The CFTC staff has provided no-action relief to commodity pool operators that extends certain filing deadlines.45 With respect to Form CPO-PQR filings under CFTC Regulation 4.27, Small and Mid-Sized CPOs have until May 15, 2020, to submit their annual filings for 2019, while Large CPOs have until July 15, 2020, to submit their filings for Q1 2020. For pool annual reports under CFTC Regulations 4.7(b)(3) or 4.22(c) that are due on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for filing and distributing the report, which must include certified financial statements, has been extended until 45 days after the due date specified in the regulations. For monthly or quarterly reports to pool participants under CFTC Regulation 4.7(b)(2) or 4.22(b) for all reporting periods ending on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for distribution to participants has been extended to 45 days after the end of the reporting period (instead of 30 days as stated in the regulations). The National Futures Association has issued similar relief for CPO Members and has provided Commodity Trading Advisor Members with similar relief for NFA Form PR filings.46 (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Liquidity Risk Management: Current developments raise a number of issues for the management of funds’ liquidity risk:
    • Assessment, management, and periodic review of liquidity risk: Funds should review fund liquidity risk in light of current and reasonably expected market events and redemption patterns and may need to consider appropriate mitigating steps for strengthening the fund’s ability to meet redemptions, including readying borrowing and other liquidity facilities. Some fund managers may wish to consider use of the relief provided by the SEC and its staff for affiliated transactions.
    • Classification of portfolio investments: Rule 22e-4 requires funds to review their portfolio investments’ liquidity classifications more frequently than monthly if changes in relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations are reasonably expected to materially affect classifications. Such reviews should focus especially on holdings that could be considered illiquid investments as a result of these developments or that could fall out of highly liquid investment status. An important consideration will be a review of the reasonably anticipated trading sizes in light of redemption expectations. Funds should be alert to the possibility that vendor classifications may be based on historical rather than current data.
    • Highly liquid investment minimum: For funds that currently hold primarily highly liquid assets, and therefore are not required to have an HLIM, the program administrator may need to examine whether the fund can still qualify for that status. For HLIM funds, the HLIM may need to be reviewed under the required factors in light of current market and redemption developments and, if a shortfall is reasonably anticipated, a shortfall response plan should be developed, which must include a plan for reporting shortfalls to the fund’s board.
    • Illiquid investments: During this period of extreme market volatility, the fund should monitor closely whether there is a need to reclassify holdings as illiquid investments. Funds should be prepared to file Form N-LIQUID if the fund’s illiquid assets exceed 15% of its net assets. The program administrator should have guidance designed to prevent purchases that would violate the prohibition on acquiring illiquid investments when over the 15% limit. We do not yet know if the SEC will provide guidance relieving funds from filing Form N-LIQUID in the event of foreign or other market closings that are beyond the scope of existing guidance on extended foreign holidays.
    • Redemptions in kind: Funds may wish to consider whether redemptions in kind would be an appropriate tool for large redemption requests, including whether operational logistics are in place to accommodate any such redemption requests. (Updated 3/19/2020)
  • MiFID II Reporting: Under the MiFID II delegated regulation, investment firms providing the service of portfolio management and subject to MiFID II must inform the client where the overall value of the portfolio, as evaluated at the beginning of each reporting period, depreciates by 10% and thereafter at multiples of 10%, no later than the end of the business day in which the threshold is exceeded or, in a case where the threshold is exceeded on a non-business day, the close of the next business day.47 (New 3/19/2020)
  • Fund Boards: Fund directors should stay up to speed on current market events so they can properly apply their business judgment as necessary from a governance standpoint. In many cases, fund boards are receiving periodic status reports or attending status updates from fund advisers. Examples of areas for directors to consider include, for funds, fund flows, liquidity levels, valuation, and performance; and for fund advisers, status of operations under business continuity plans, market assessments, and the assessment of critical fund service providers. Board reporting from fund advisers is particularly important during times of market stress. To strike an appropriate balance between staying apprised and being efficient and respectful of fund advisory personnel time, boards may seek to channel questions or communications through independent counsel or the board chair/lead independent director. (New 3/19/2020)
  • Business Continuity Plans: Business continuity at the current time is key. In most cases, those plans already are in effect. Consideration should be given to contingency planning in the event that fund managers, transfer agents, pricing services, or other service providers are unable to provide services because of employee absences. Funds and fund managers should make and communicate revisions to their plans as they adjust to the developing environment.
  • Valuation: Funds should examine whether they are able to obtain valid prices for their investments, especially in markets that may be closed or have limited availability. Experience from the 2008 financial crisis shows that vendor reassurances as to the quality of their pricing information may provide false comfort, so vendor prices should be checked for reliability. At this time, we do not expect the SEC to provide relief from the daily pricing requirement.
  • Redemptions: Under Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act, open-end funds generally may not suspend the right of redemption unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed, or the SEC provides guidance that daily redemptions are not required because trading is restricted or an emergency exists. At this point, funds should assume that they must continue to provide daily redemptions. Funds should review any borrowing arrangements that may need to be utilized. We are closely monitoring for any relevant guidance from the SEC or its staff on this topic.
  • Cybersecurity: Firms are at increased risk of cyberattacks, particularly with the use of remote offices and telework. Anxious employees may be more vulnerable to email phishing attacks. Employees should be reminded of the continued need for vigilance.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your Stradley Ronon contact, or to any member of Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force, with any questions and concerns you may have during this period. You can reach Sara Crovitz at 202.507.6414 or scrovitz@stradley.com, or John Baker at 202.419.8413 or jbaker@stradley.com.

_________________

1 Policy Tools: Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/talf.htm.

2 FAQs: Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (May 12, 2020), https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility/term-asset-backed-securities-loan-facility-faq.

3 Franklin Templeton Investments, SEC No-Action Letter (June 19, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/franklintempleton061909.htm. Stradley Ronon acted as counsel for this no-action request. See also T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., SEC No-Action Letter (Oct. 8, 2009), https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/noaction/2009/troweprice100809.htm (relief under 1940 Act § 17(d) and Rule 17d-1 for registered funds and certain other accounts to participate in TALF through a special purpose vehicle).

4 Paycheck Protection Program, https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/paycheck-protection-program.

5 Paycheck Protection Program Loans: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) #46, 47 (May 13, 2020), https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Paycheck-Protection-Program-Frequently-Asked-Questions.pdf.

6 Business Loan Program Temporary Changes; Paycheck Protection Program—Requirements—Promissory Notes, Authorizations, Affiliation, and Eligibility, 85 Fed. Reg. 23450, 23451 (Apr. 28, 2020), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2020-09098.

7 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A II.4, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

8 Policy Tools: Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/smccf.htm.

9 Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/secondary-market-corporate-credit-facility.

10 Press Release, Federal Reserve takes additional actions to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200409a.htm.

11 Release Nos. 33-10695, IC-33646 (Sept. 25, 2019), 84 Fed. Reg. 57162, 57178 (Oct. 24, 2019), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2019-21250.

12 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board broadens program of support for the flow of credit to households and businesses by establishing a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) (Mar. 18, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200318a.htm.

13 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board expands its program of support for the flow of credit to the economy by taking steps to enhance liquidity and functioning of crucial state and municipal money markets (Mar. 20, 2020) https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200320b.htm.

14 Policy Tools: Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/mmlf.htm.

15 Money Market Mutual Funds Template Letter (Mar. 17, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/legalinterpretations/fedreserseactint20200317.pdf.

16 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 19, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-031920-17a.

17 H.R. 748, § 4015, 116th Cong. (2020), https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr748/BILLS-116hr748enr.pdf.

18 SEC Division of Investment Management, Importance of Delivering Timely and Material Information to Investment Company Investors (Apr. 14, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/delivering-timely-material-information.

19 As discussed below, the SEC has provided limited conditional relief from the obligation to timely deliver prospectuses to existing shareholders. See infra Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports.

20 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A III.5, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

21 Staff Guidance for Conducting Annual Meetings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocr/staff-guidance-conducting-annual-meetings-light-covid-19-concerns.

22 Release No. IC-33837 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/ic-33837.pdf.

23 SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, Investors Remain Front of Mind at the SEC: Approach to Allocation of Resources, Oversight and Rulemaking; Implementation of Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-clayton-investors-rbi-form-crs.

24 OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert-%20Regulation%20Best%20Interest%20Exams.pdf; OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Form CRS (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert%20-%20Form%20CRS%20Exams.pdf.

25 FINRA Highlights Firm Practices from Regulation Best Interest Preparedness Reviews (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/regulation-best-interest/preparedness.

26 Frequently Asked Questions on Form CRS, https://www.sec.gov/investment/form-crs-faq#filing.

27 Division of Trading and Markets Staff Statement Regarding Requirements for Certain Paper Submissions in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/tm/paper-submission-requirements-covid-19.

28 SEC Division of Corporation Finance, Statement Regarding Requirements for Form 144 Paper Filings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 10, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/form-144-paper-filings-email-option.

29 IM Information Update IM-INFO-2020-03 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/im-info-2020-03.pdf.

30 SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia, Statement on the Importance of High-Quality Financial Reporting in Light of the Significant Impacts of COVID-19 (Apr. 3, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-teotia-financial-reporting-covid-19-2020-04-03.

31 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 26, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-032620-17a.

32 Release No. IC-33821 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33821.pdf.

33 Recent interfund lending orders are available at https://www.sec.gov/rules/icreleases.shtml#interfundlending.

34 OCIE Statement on Operations and Exams – Health, Safety, Investor Protection and Continued Operations are our Priorities (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocie/announcement/ocie-statement-operations-health-safety-investor-protection-and-continued.

35 Staff Statement Regarding Rule 302(b) of Regulation S-T in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/staff-statement-regarding-rule-302b-regulation-s-t-light-covid-19-concerns.

36 Frequently Asked Questions Related to Regulatory Relief Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/guidance/faqs/coronavirus. FINRA guidance, updates, and other information on COVID-19 are available at https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19. Other self-regulatory organizations are also providing relief and guidance. See, e.g., Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-021 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-021-Filing-Extensions-for-Annual-Reports-and-FOCUS-Reports.pdf; Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-022 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-022-Extension-of-Time-for-Certain-Filings-Currently-Due-April-1-2020.pdf.

37 Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 Updates, https://www.nasaa.org/industry-resources/covid-19-updates/.

38 For the 1940 Act Orders, see Release No. IC-33824 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33824.pdf; Release No. IC-33817 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33817.pdf. For the Advisers Act Orders, see IA-5469 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5469.pdf; Release No. IA-5463 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5463.pdf. The various forms of relief provided by the SEC are subject to conditions that are set out in the respective orders, such as subsequent ratification of votes, notice to the SEC of filing delays, and website disclosure of issues with the delivery of shareholder reports, prospectuses, and Form ADV client brochures.

39 Using IARD, Form ADV: Item 1.F, https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/iard/iardfaq.shtml#item1f.

40 Release No. 34-88465(Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88465.pdf; Release No. 34-88318 (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/34-88318.pdf.

41 Press Release 2020-73, SEC Extends Conditional Exemptions from Reporting and Proxy Delivery Requirements for Public Companies, Funds, and Investment Advisers Affected by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-73; Press Release 2020-63, SEC Takes Targeted Action to Assist Funds and Advisers, Permits Virtual Board Meetings and Provides Conditional Relief from Certain Filing Procedures (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-63.

42 SEC Division of Investment Management, Staff Statement on Fund Board Meetings and Unforeseen or Emergency Circumstances Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/staff-statement-im-covid-19.

43 State “Shelter-in-Place” and “Stay-at-Home” Orders, https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19/shelter-in-place.

44 Release No. 34-8844 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88448.pdf.

45 Press Release No. 8136-20, CFTC Issues Third Wave of Relief to Market Participants in Response to COVID-19 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8136-20.

46 Notice to Members I-20-15 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.nfa.futures.org/news/newsNotice.asp?ArticleID=5218.

47 European Commission Delegated Regulation art. 62, https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/3/2016/EN/3-2016-2398-EN-F1-1.PDF.

COVID-19 Coverage: Part 8 of 1940 Act Issues to Consider During the Pandemic

Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force will be updating this high-level overview of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related issues for registered investment companies and fund managers as developments warrant.

NEW ISSUES:

  • Division of Investment Management Statement: The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Investment Management has issued a statement emphasizing the ongoing importance of updating and delivering required information to fund investors in a timely manner, even during this period of operational challenge.1 The statement reminds funds of the obligation to update prospectuses and deliver them to new investors,2 and it encourages funds to consider whether disclosures should be revised based on how COVID-19-related events may affect the fund and its investors. (New 4/20/2020)
  • Closed-End Funds: A closed-end fund is required to suspend its offering of shares until it amends its prospectus if the fund’s net asset value declines more than 10% from the NAV as of the effective date of the registration statement. The SEC staff has released guidance allowing the use of a prospectus supplement, with notice to the SEC staff, rather than an amendment to the registration statement.3 (New 4/20/2020)

UPDATED ISSUES:

  • Market Closures and Market Restrictions: A list of securities market closures and market restrictions is available here(Updated 4/20/2020)
  • Shareholder Meetings: The SEC staff has provided guidance to both operating companies and funds that is intended to provide regulatory flexibility to companies seeking to change the date and location of shareholders meetings and to use new technologies, such as “virtual” shareholder meetings that avoid the need for in-person shareholder attendance, while at the same time ensuring that shareholders and other market participants are informed of any changes.4 The guidance notes that the ability to conduct a “virtual” meeting is governed by state law, where permitted, and the issuer’s governing documents. Note that companies seeking to conduct a virtual meeting may, under state law, need to have an appropriate process for shareholders to vote at the meeting. The guidance has been revised to extend to special meetings as well as annual meetings and to provide further guidance on notice requirements. (Updated 4/20/2020)

ISSUES:

  • Business Development Companies: The SEC has provided limited and conditional exemptive relief for business development companies that provides additional flexibility to BDCs to issue and sell senior securities.5 In addition, for BDCs with an SEC order permitting co-investment transactions with certain affiliates, the SEC relief allows the BDC to participate in certain follow-on investments with regulated funds and affiliated funds. The relief is available until Dec. 31, 2020. (New 4/13/2020)
  • Exchange-Traded Funds:
    • For an ETF that invests in foreign markets that close, the ETF may wish to consider whether to invest in alternative instruments, such as ADRs, in order to achieve the desired exposure to the foreign securities. In circumstances where there is no ability to make additional investments in appropriate alternative instruments, an ETF may wish to stop accepting creation unit purchases. The Commission previously has noted that ETFs generally may suspend the issuance of creation units only for a limited time and only due to extraordinary circumstances, such as when the markets on which the ETF’s portfolio holdings are traded are closed for a limited period of time.6 ETF issuers should be aware that any decision to suspend creations could have an impact on the arbitrage efficiency of the ETF and could lead to greater deviations between the market price of the ETF shares and the NAV of the shares. Like other open-end funds, ETFs cannot suspend redemptions unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed or there is appropriate guidance from the SEC. ETFs are permitted to charge transaction fees of up to 2% on redemptions. Such fees are designed to offset the costs of redemptions to the ETF. Some fixed-income ETFs that deliver cash redemptions instead of in-kind redemptions reportedly have increased their transaction fees on redemptions in light of increased transaction costs in the bond market. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • On March 23, 2020, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York established the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF), which will purchase in the secondary market corporate bonds issued by U.S. companies and shares of U.S.-listed ETFs whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds.7 The New York Fed has retained BlackRock Financial Markets Advisory as a third-party vendor to serve as the investment manager for this facility.8 The SMCCF will cease making such purchases no later than Sept. 30, 2020, unless extended. The Federal Reserve Board announced on April 9 that the SMCCF has been expanded and, together with the Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility, will have a combined size of up to $750 billion.9 The SMCCF may purchase any U.S.-listed ETF whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds, although the preponderance of ETF holdings will be ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds. The SMCCF will not purchase shares of an ETF if it then would own more than 20% of the ETF’s shares. (Updated 4/13/2020)
  • Regulation BI/Form CRS: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton has announced that the SEC believes that the June 30, 2020, compliance date for Regulation Best Interest and other requirements, including the requirement to file and begin delivering Form CRS, remains appropriate.10 To the extent that a firm is unable to make certain filings or meet other requirements because of disruptions caused by COVID-19, including as a result of efforts to comply with national, state or local health and safety directives and guidance, the firm should engage with the SEC. The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued two Risk Alerts that provide broker-dealers and investment advisers with advance information about the expected scope and content of the initial examinations for compliance with Regulation BI and Form CRS,11 and FINRA has provided guidance on best practices in preparing for Regulation BI.12 The SEC staff has announced that it is now accepting filings on Form CRS.13 (Updated 4/13/2020)
  • Paper Submissions: Although most SEC filings are now made electronically via EDGAR, there are still some submissions that normally must be submitted in paper form.
    • The SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets has announced relief for certain submissions that are required to be filed in paper format with a manual signature and for related notarization requirements.14 The affected filings include audited annual reports submitted by broker-dealers. Filers should contact Division staff to discuss the appropriate process for filing. The staff statement covers submissions for the period from and including March 16, 2020, to June 30, 2020. (New 4/7/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance has announced that notices of proposed sales of securities on Form 144 may be filed via email and, subject to certain conditions, may have a typed form of signature rather than a manual signature.15 (New 4/13/2020)
    • The SEC’s Division of Investment Management has announced that requests for hearing applications on notices of applications for exemptive orders under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 must be submitted by email.16 (New 4/13/2020)
  • Accounting Issues: SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia has announced that the SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant recognizes that the accounting and financial reporting implications of COVID-19 may require companies to make significant judgments and estimates in a number of accounting areas, including fair value and impairment considerations.17 The OCA has consistently not objected to well-reasoned judgments that entities have made, and it will continue to apply this perspective. The OCA remains available for consultation and encourages stakeholders to contact it with questions they encounter as a result of COVID-19. (New 4/7/2020)
  • SEC Comment Periods: The SEC has issued a statement noting that the Commission and staff have historically considered comments submitted after a comment period closes but before adoption of a final rule or order.18 For certain pending rule proposals, including proposals concerning auditor independence, the accredited investor definition, and fund investments in derivatives, the SEC does not expect action to be taken before May 1 In addition, the SEC and other regulators have announced that they will consider comments submitted before May 1 on their pending proposal with respect to the Volcker Rule.19 Updated 4/7/2020)
  • Money Market Mutual Funds:
    • Form N-CR: Several money market funds filed on Form N-CR in March to report financial support, and one money market fund filed on Form N-CR in March to report downward deviations of its shadow price by more than ¼ of 1%. An amended report is required to be filed within four business days of the provision of financial support or downward deviation that describes the reason for the support and terms of the support or the reason for the deviation, as applicable. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Purchases by Affiliated Banks: The Federal Reserve Board has issued a template exemptive letter allowing banks to purchase assets from affiliated money market funds, subject to certain conditions, including that the assets must be investment grade and purchased at fair market value.20 In addition, the SEC staff has granted no-action relief to permit certain bank affiliates of money market funds to purchase securities from the funds in accordance with the Federal Reserve Board guidance, but otherwise pursuant to rule 17a-9, subject to certain conditions.21 The SEC no-action letter does not affect the ability of other money market fund affiliates to purchase assets from the fund in accordance with rule 17a-9. (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Liquidity Facility: The Federal Reserve Board has announced a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) that is intended to assist money market funds in meeting demands for redemptions.22 Under the MMLF, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston will lend to depository institutions and bank holding companies, taking as collateral assets purchased by the borrower from prime money market funds (i) concurrently with the borrowing or (ii) or on or after March 18, but before the opening of the facility. The facility is similar to the Asset-Backed Commercial Paper Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility that operated from late 2008 to early 2010 but will purchase a broader range of assets. The Federal Reserve Board expanded the facility to cover certain assets purchased from tax-exempt municipal money market funds.23 The Federal Reserve Board has announced that the facility opened March 23, and full documentation and additional guidance are available.24 (Updated 3/23/2020)
    • Guaranty: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), which was enacted into law on March 27, suspends the existing prohibition on the use of the Exchange Stabilization Fund for the establishment of any guaranty programs for the money market fund industry.25 Any such guarantee shall be limited to a guarantee of the total value of a shareholder’s account in a participating fund as of the close of business on the day before the announcement of the guarantee and terminate not later than Dec. 31, 2020. This provision allows the Department of the Treasury to establish a Money Market Funds Guaranty Program, but does not require it to do so. (Updated 3/31/2020)
  • Affiliated Purchases of Debt Securities: The SEC staff has issued no-action relief to affiliates of open-end funds, other than exchange-traded funds and money market funds, to allow them to purchase debt securities from the funds.26 The relief is subject to conditions, including that the price must be the security’s fair market value per Section 2(a)(41) of the 1940 Act, provided that this price is not materially different from the value indicated by a reliable third-party pricing service, and that the fund must publicly disclose the purchase on its website and inform the staff. In addition, if the purchaser thereafter sells the security for a higher price, it must promptly pay the difference to the fund, unless the purchaser is a bank or bank affiliate and this condition would conflict with Sections 23A and 23B of the Federal Reserve Act. The relief will be in effect until further notice from the staff. (New 3/31/2020)
  • SEC Lending and Borrowing Relief: The SEC has issued an order providing additional flexibility for open-end funds (other than money market funds) and insurance company separate accounts registered as unit investment trusts to obtain short-term funding.27 The relief is available until a notice terminating it is issued, which will be at least two weeks from the date of the notice and no earlier than June 30, 2020. Prior to relying on any of the relief, the fund would have to notify SEC staff. In addition, interfund lending requires notification on a fund’s public website.
    • Fund affiliates may lend money to the fund on a collateralized basis, provided the board makes determinations that the borrowing is in the best interest of the fund and its shareholders and that it will be for the purposes of satisfying shareholder redemptions.
    • For fund families with an SEC order permitting an interfund lending and borrowing facility, a lending fund may lend up to 25% of its current net assets and the term may be for any period that does not extend beyond the expiration of the relief, notwithstanding the terms of the order, provided, among other conditions, that the board reasonably determines that the maximum term for interfund loans is appropriate. (Recent orders typically limit lending funds to 15% of current net assets and the term to seven days.)
    • For fund families without an interfund lending order, funds may lend and borrow in accordance with the terms of any such order issued within the past twelve months, with the same modifications.28
    • Funds are not required to seek shareholder approval if lending under the relief would violate a fundamental policy, provided that the board reasonably determines that the lending or borrowing is in the best interests of the fund and its shareholders. (New 3/27/2020)
  • OCIE Statement: The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued a statement that it has moved to conducting examinations off-site through correspondence unless it is absolutely necessary to be on-site, and that it will work with registrants to ensure that its work can be conducted in a manner consistent with maintaining normal operations and with necessary or appropriate health and safety measures.29 OCIE also stated that reliance on regulatory relief will not be a risk factor utilized in determining whether OCIE commences an examination, and it encourages registrants to utilize available regulatory relief as needed. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Signatures on EDGAR Filings: The SEC staff has issued a statement on the manual signature and record requirements for documents filed electronically with the SEC.30 The staff will not recommend enforcement action if a signatory retains a document adopting the signature and provides the document to the filer for retention, with the time and date executed, and the filer establishes and maintains policies and procedures governing this process. (New 3/27/2020)
  • FINRA Guidance: FINRA has issued guidance that provides temporary relief and guidance with respect to a number of requirements, including filings that would otherwise be required for temporary relocations and the timing of FOCUS reports and certain other filings.31 The guidance will be available until FINRA publishes a Regulatory Notice announcing a termination date. (New 3/27/2020)
  • Blue Sky Guidance: A number of state and provincial securities regulators have published guidance that provides relief or other COVID-19-related updates. The North American Securities Administrators Association has established a resource page to collect these updates.32 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • SEC Filings: The SEC has updated its previous orders under both the 1940 Act and the Investment Advisers Act to extend the time periods of the relief.33 Entities must notify the SEC staff and/or investors, as applicable, of the intent to rely on the relief, but generally no longer need to describe why they are relying on the order or estimate a date by which the required action will occur. The 1940 Act Orders provide relief from the timeliness requirements of Form N-CEN, Form N-PORT, and Form N-23C-2 when a fund is unable to meet a deadline due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. The relief for Forms N-CEN and N-PORT applies to filing obligations for which the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, while the relief for Form N-23C-2 extends to Aug. 15, 2020. The Advisers Act Orders provide timeliness relief for Form ADV and Form PF filings and for Form ADV Part 2 client delivery obligations for 45 days from the original due date, when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020. The SEC previously posted staff guidance that Form ADV does not have to be updated to reflect temporary teleworking locations.34 The SEC has also provided relief from timeliness requirements for certain filings under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.35 Note that filings not covered by the orders continue to be required on a timely basis, including filings on Form N-LIQUID, Form N-CR, and Form N-MFP, although it is possible that the SEC will consider issues with these forms on an individualized basis. The SEC provided information on contacting the staff with issues, including issues with these filings, in press releases announcing the actions.36 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • In-Person Board Meetings: The 1940 Act Orders allow fund boards to meet telephonically or by video conference to consider and vote on matters that would otherwise require an in-person vote. The relief applies whenever reliance upon it is necessary or appropriate due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19 and is available until Aug. 15, 2020. The SEC’s Division of Investment Management previously provided no-action relief for the period from March 4 to June 15.37 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports: The 1940 Act Orders also provide relief from the obligations to timely transmit annual and semiannual reports to shareholders and to file them with the SEC. The relief applies when the original due date is on or after March 13 but on or prior to June 30, 2020, and the fund is unable to prepare or transmit the report due to circumstances related to current or potential effects of COVID-19. In addition, the SEC announced that it would not provide a basis for an SEC enforcement action if a fund does not timely deliver a current prospectus because of circumstances related to COVID-19 when delivery was originally required during this period. The position is not available to an initial purchase by the investor of the fund’s shares. (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • State and Local Closures: Many states, counties and cities have announced business closures in connection with “shelter-in-place” public health efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19. Some of the orders may contain broad exceptions for the financial services industry, while others may not. Beyond the direct impact on firms in those localities, review the location of service providers and the terms of these orders carefully to determine whether necessary support functions will remain available. FINRA has posted a resource page with links to state “shelter-in-place” and “stay-at-home” orders.38 (Updated 3/27/2020)
  • Transfer Agents: The SEC has provided a broad exemption for the period from March 16 to May 30 from requirements applicable to transfer agents except for the safeguarding requirement.39 Transfer agents relying on the relief must provide notice to the SEC by May 30. The SEC encourages transfer agents and the issuers for whom they act to inform affected security holders. (New 3/23/2020)
  • Tax Implications for Funds with Institutional Shareholders: For institutional funds with few shareholders, beware that the fund could fall into personal holding company status if at any time during the last half of the taxable year more than 50% in value of the fund’s shares are owned, directly or indirectly, by or for not more than 5 “individuals.” For purposes of this rule, employee pension trusts, private foundations, trusts forming part of a plan providing for the payment of supplemental unemployment compensation benefits, and a trust, a portion of which is permanently set aside or to be used exclusively for charitable purposes, are considered individuals. (New 3/23/2020)
  • CPO NFA Filings: The CFTC staff has provided no-action relief to commodity pool operators that extends certain filing deadlines.40 With respect to Form CPO-PQR filings under CFTC Regulation 4.27, Small and Mid-Sized CPOs have until May 15, 2020, to submit their annual filings for 2019, while Large CPOs have until July 15, 2020, to submit their filings for Q1 2020. For pool annual reports under CFTC Regulations 4.7(b)(3) or 4.22(c) that are due on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for filing and distributing the report, which must include certified financial statements, has been extended until 45 days after the due date specified in the regulations. For monthly or quarterly reports to pool participants under CFTC Regulation 4.7(b)(2) or 4.22(b) for all reporting periods ending on or before April 30, 2020, the deadline for distribution to participants has been extended to 45 days after the end of the reporting period (instead of 30 days as stated in the regulations). The National Futures Association has issued similar relief for CPO Members and has provided Commodity Trading Advisor Members with similar relief for NFA Form PR filings.41 (Updated 3/23/2020)
  • Liquidity Risk Management: Current developments raise a number of issues for the management of funds’ liquidity risk:
  • Assessment, management, and periodic review of liquidity risk: Funds should review fund liquidity risk in light of current and reasonably expected market events and redemption patterns and may need to consider appropriate mitigating steps for strengthening the fund’s ability to meet redemptions, including readying borrowing and other liquidity facilities. Some fund managers may wish to consider use of the relief provided by the SEC and its staff for affiliated transactions.
  • Classification of portfolio investments: Rule 22e-4 requires funds to review their portfolio investments’ liquidity classifications more frequently than monthly if changes in relevant market, trading, and investment-specific considerations are reasonably expected to materially affect classifications. Such reviews should focus especially on holdings that could be considered illiquid investments as a result of these developments or that could fall out of highly liquid investment status. An important consideration will be a review of the reasonably anticipated trading sizes in light of redemption expectations. Funds should be alert to the possibility that vendor classifications may be based on historical rather than current data.
  • Highly liquid investment minimum: For funds that currently hold primarily highly liquid assets, and therefore are not required to have an HLIM, the program administrator may need to examine whether the fund can still qualify for that status. For HLIM funds, the HLIM may need to be reviewed under the required factors in light of current market and redemption developments and, if a shortfall is reasonably anticipated, a shortfall response plan should be developed, which must include a plan for reporting shortfalls to the fund’s board.
  • Illiquid investments: During this period of extreme market volatility, the fund should monitor closely whether there is a need to reclassify holdings as illiquid investments. Funds should be prepared to file Form N-LIQUID if the fund’s illiquid assets exceed 15% of its net assets. The program administrator should have guidance designed to prevent purchases that would violate the prohibition on acquiring illiquid investments when over the 15% limit. We do not yet know if the SEC will provide guidance relieving funds from filing Form N-LIQUID in the event of foreign or other market closings that are beyond the scope of existing guidance on extended foreign holidays.
  • Redemptions in kind: Funds may wish to consider whether redemptions in kind would be an appropriate tool for large redemption requests, including whether operational logistics are in place to accommodate any such redemption requests. (Updated 3/19/2020)
  • MiFID II Reporting: Under the MiFID II delegated regulation, investment firms providing the service of portfolio management and subject to MiFID II must inform the client where the overall value of the portfolio, as evaluated at the beginning of each reporting period, depreciates by 10% and thereafter at multiples of 10%, no later than the end of the business day in which the threshold is exceeded or, in a case where the threshold is exceeded on a non-business day, the close of the next business day.42 (New 3/19/2020)
  • Fund Boards: Fund directors should stay up to speed on current market events so they can properly apply their business judgment as necessary from a governance standpoint. In many cases, fund boards are receiving periodic status reports or attending status updates from fund advisers. Examples of areas for directors to consider include, for funds, fund flows, liquidity levels, valuation, and performance; and for fund advisers, status of operations under business continuity plans, market assessments, and the assessment of critical fund service providers. Board reporting from fund advisers is particularly important during times of market stress. To strike an appropriate balance between staying apprised and being efficient and respectful of fund advisory personnel time, boards may seek to channel questions or communications through independent counsel or the board chair/lead independent director. (New 3/19/2020)
  • Business Continuity Plans: Business continuity at the current time is key. In most cases, those plans already are in effect. Consideration should be given to contingency planning in the event that fund managers, transfer agents, pricing services, or other service providers are unable to provide services because of employee absences. Funds and fund managers should make and communicate revisions to their plans as they adjust to the developing environment.
  • Valuation: Funds should examine whether they are able to obtain valid prices for their investments, especially in markets that may be closed or have limited availability. Experience from the 2008 financial crisis shows that vendor reassurances as to the quality of their pricing information may provide false comfort, so vendor prices should be checked for reliability. At this time, we do not expect the SEC to provide relief from the daily pricing requirement.
  • Redemptions: Under Section 22(e) of the 1940 Act, open-end funds generally may not suspend the right of redemption unless the New York Stock Exchange is closed, or the SEC provides guidance that daily redemptions are not required because trading is restricted or an emergency exists. At this point, funds should assume that they must continue to provide daily redemptions. Funds should review any borrowing arrangements that may need to be utilized. We are closely monitoring for any relevant guidance from the SEC or its staff on this topic.
  • Cybersecurity: Firms are at increased risk of cyberattacks, particularly with the use of remote offices and telework. Anxious employees may be more vulnerable to email phishing attacks. Employees should be reminded of the continued need for vigilance.
  • Prospectus Disclosures: Funds should review their prospectus disclosures, and particularly their risk disclosures. It may be appropriate to add a pandemic risk factor if this risk is not already addressed. However, funds have different risk profiles, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution for the necessary disclosures.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to your Stradley Ronon contact, or to any member of Stradley’s Coronavirus Task Force, with any questions and concerns you may have during this period. You can reach Crovitz Sara at 202.507.6414 or scrovitz@stradley.com, or John Baker at 202.419.8413 or jbaker@stradley.com.

__________________

1 SEC Division of Investment Management, Importance of Delivering Timely and Material Information to Investment Company Investors (Apr. 14, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/delivering-timely-material-information.

2 As discussed below, the SEC has provided limited conditional relief from the obligation to timely deliver prospectuses to existing shareholders. See infra Delivery of Prospectuses and Shareholder Reports.

3 Division of Investment Management Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response FAQs, Q&A III.5, https://www.sec.gov/investment/covid-19-response-faq.

4 Staff Guidance for Conducting Annual Meetings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocr/staff-guidance-conducting-annual-meetings-light-covid-19-concerns.

5 Release No. IC-33837 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/ic-33837.pdf.

6 Release Nos. 33-10695, IC-33646 (Sept. 25, 2019), 84 Fed. Reg. 57162, 57178 (Oct. 24, 2019), https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2019-21250.

7 Policy Tools: Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/smccf.htm.

8 Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility, https://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/secondary-market-corporate-credit-facility.

9 Press Release, Federal Reserve takes additional actions to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200409a.htm.

10 SEC Chairman Jay Clayton, Investors Remain Front of Mind at the SEC: Approach to Allocation of Resources, Oversight and Rulemaking; Implementation of Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-clayton-investors-rbi-form-crs.

11 OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Regulation Best Interest (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert-%20Regulation%20Best%20Interest%20Exams.pdf; OCIE, Risk Alert: Examinations that Focus on Compliance with Form CRS (Apr. 7, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/Risk%20Alert%20-%20Form%20CRS%20Exams.pdf.

12 FINRA Highlights Firm Practices from Regulation Best Interest Preparedness Reviews (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/regulation-best-interest/preparedness.

13 Frequently Asked Questions on Form CRS, https://www.sec.gov/investment/form-crs-faq#filing.

14 Division of Trading and Markets Staff Statement Regarding Requirements for Certain Paper Submissions in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/tm/paper-submission-requirements-covid-19.

15 SEC Division of Corporation Finance, Statement Regarding Requirements for Form 144 Paper Filings in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Apr. 10, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/form-144-paper-filings-email-option.

16 IM Information Update IM-INFO-2020-03 (Apr. 8, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/files/im-info-2020-03.pdf.

17 SEC Chief Accountant Sagar Teotia, Statement on the Importance of High-Quality Financial Reporting in Light of the Significant Impacts of COVID-19 (Apr. 3, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-teotia-financial-reporting-covid-19-2020-04-03.

18 Comment Periods for Certain Pending Actions, https://www.sec.gov/rules/proposed.shtml.

19 Press Release 2020-79, Agencies Will Consider Comments on Volcker Rule Modifications Following Expiration of Comment Period (Apr. 2, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-79.

20 Money Market Mutual Funds Template Letter (Mar. 17, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/supervisionreg/legalinterpretations/fedreserseactint20200317.pdf.

21 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 19, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-031920-17a.

22 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board broadens program of support for the flow of credit to households and businesses by establishing a Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) (Mar. 18, 2020), https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200318a.htm.

23 Press Release, Federal Reserve Board expands its program of support for flow of credit to the economy by taking steps to enhance liquidity and functioning of crucial state and municipal money markets (Mar. 20, 2020) https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20200320b.htm.

24 Policy Tools: Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility, https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/mmlf.htm.

25 H.R. 748, § 4015, 116th Cong. (2020), https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr748/BILLS-116hr748enr.pdf.

26 Investment Company Institute, SEC No-Action Letter (Mar. 26, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/investment-company-institute-032620-17a.

27 Release No. IC-33821 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33821.pdf.

28 Recent interfund lending orders are available at https://www.sec.gov/rules/icreleases.shtml#interfundlending.

29 OCIE Statement on Operations and Exams – Health, Safety, Investor Protection and Continued Operations are our Priorities (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/ocie/announcement/ocie-statement-operations-health-safety-investor-protection-and-continued.

30 Staff Statement Regarding Rule 302(b) of Regulation S-T in Light of COVID-19 Concerns (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/corpfin/announcement/staff-statement-regarding-rule-302b-regulation-s-t-light-covid-19-concerns.

31 Frequently Asked Questions Related to Regulatory Relief Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic (Mar. 24, 2020), https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/guidance/faqs/coronavirus. FINRA guidance, updates, and other information on COVID-19 are available at https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19. Other self-regulatory organizations are also providing relief and guidance. See, e.g., Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-021 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-021-Filing-Extensions-for-Annual-Reports-and-FOCUS-Reports.pdf; Cboe Regulatory Circular 20-022 (Mar. 25, 2020), http://cdn.cboe.com/resources/regulation/circulars/regulatory/RC20-022-Extension-of-Time-for-Certain-Filings-Currently-Due-April-1-2020.pdf.

32 Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 Updates, https://www.nasaa.org/industry-resources/covid-19-updates/.

33 For the 1940 Act Orders, see Release No. IC-33824 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33824.pdf; Release No. IC-33817 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ic-33817.pdf. For the Advisers Act Orders, see IA-5469 (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5469.pdf; Release No. IA-5463 (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/ia-5463.pdf. The various forms of relief provided by the SEC are subject to conditions that are set out in the respective orders, such as subsequent ratification of votes, notice to the SEC of filing delays, and website disclosure of issues with the delivery of shareholder reports, prospectuses, and Form ADV client brochures.

34 Using IARD, Form ADV: Item 1.F, https://www.sec.gov/divisions/investment/iard/iardfaq.shtml#item1f.

35 Release No. 34-88465(Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88465.pdf; Release No. 34-88318 (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2020/34-88318.pdf.

36 Press Release 2020-73, SEC Extends Conditional Exemptions from Reporting and Proxy Delivery Requirements for Public Companies, Funds, and Investment Advisers Affected by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 25, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-73; Press Release 2020-63, SEC Takes Targeted Action to Assist Funds and Advisers, Permits Virtual Board Meetings and Provides Conditional Relief from Certain Filing Procedures (Mar. 13, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-63.

37 SEC Division of Investment Management, Staff Statement on Fund Board Meetings and Unforeseen or Emergency Circumstances Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Mar. 4, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/investment/staff-statement-im-covid-19.

38 State “Shelter-in-Place” and “Stay-at-Home” Orders, https://www.finra.org/rules-guidance/key-topics/covid-19/shelter-in-place.

39 Release No. 34-8844 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.sec.gov/rules/exorders/2020/34-88448.pdf.

40 Press Release No. 8136-20, CFTC Issues Third Wave of Relief to Market Participants in Response to COVID-19 (Mar. 20, 2020), https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8136-20.

41 Notice to Members I-20-15 (Mar. 23, 2020), https://www.nfa.futures.org/news/newsNotice.asp?ArticleID=5218.

42 European Commission Delegated Regulation art. 62, https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/3/2016/EN/3-2016-2398-EN-F1-1.PDF.