E-Mails Show ING Allowed Market Timing Money Management Executive, 6/15/06 ING paid a $1.4 million fine to the NASD for allowing market timing in several of its retirement programs, including the one it runs in its own state of New Hampshire. Regulators made the discovery through company e-mails, where a number of ING employees expressed concern that market timing by a few large clients was hurting returns for long-term shareholders. ING fired a number of employees in 2004 for market timing infractions. www.mmexecutive.com Alger Settles Market Timing Charges for $45 Million Money Management Executive, 6/15/06 Fred Alger Management has settled with the SEC and New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer for $45 million in reimbursements, fines and fee reductions. The firm is settling charges that it allowed certain investors to improperly market time its mutual funds. This settlement closes one of the last, as well as one of the more eventful market-timing cases. An Alger spokesperson said the entire settlement amount will be for the benefit of investors. www.mmexecutive.com Shelf-Space Lawsuit Against Merrill Dismissed Investment News, 6/14/06 A federal judge has dismissed a shelf-space suit against the company. Investors alleged that Merrill took money from funds in exchange for the firms steering customers to Merrill. The fund firms, which included Dreyfus, Lord Abbett and BlackRock, did not fully disclose the arrangement causing investors to pay excessive fees according to the lawsuit. www.investmentnews.com Ameriprise Pays $22 Million to Retirees Star Tribune, 5/17/06 Ameriprise has been ordered by the NASD to pay 32 Exxon Mobil retirees $22 million. The retirees accused the unit and a broker of fraud, citing breach of contract, unauthorized trading and failure to supervise. A broker was accused of investing the group’s retirement funds in risky accounts that paid him commissions. Ameriprise said it plans to appeal the ruling. www.startribune.com Man Financial Sued for Fraud and Racketeering Bloomberg.com, 5/12/06 Man Financial and seven of its employees were sued for fraud and racketeering by a court-appointed receiver seeking to recoup investor assets lost in the collapse of a Philadelphia hedge fund. Man Financial allegedly allowed the hedge fund to hide $140 million in losses by shifting losing trades to an account that wasn’t shown to investors. Man Financial has said that it “categorically denies” the allegations and plans to fight them in court. www.bloomberg.com Morgan Stanley Agrees to Pay $15 Million Fine Yahoo Finance, 5/10/06 Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. has agreed to pay a $15 million civil fine to settle federal regulators’ charges that the firm repeatedly failed to provide tens of thousands of e-mails which they sought in several major investigations over prior years. Morgan Stanley has neither admitted nor denied the allegations, but did consent to a permanent injunction against future violations of the securities laws. The $15 million penalty is among the biggest fines ever levied on a brokerage firm for failing to produce documents. www.yahoo.com
