The Mutual Fund Directors Forum and the Investment Company Institute have both panned a recent Wall Street Journal editorial that said the new rules on money market funds were harmful to investors.
The Independent Directors Council has released a paper focusing on board oversight of subadvisors.
Consultant group Management Practice has issued a bulletin looking into the idea of integrating a performance fee into director compensation.
The Independent Directors Council has urged the Securities and Exchange Commission to exempt investment companies from plans to boost shareholders' ability to nominate directors.
ICI Mutual is working on a study on prospectus liability risk that is slated to be released in the first half of 2010.
Removing references to credit ratings of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (NRSROs) from Rule 5b-3 and replacing it with a more subjective standard is unnecessary and may create more work for fund boards, according to the Investment Company Institute.
Separating the notice to shareholders about an upcoming election from the proxy card actually used to vote will not cause shareholders to cast a more informed vote, according to the Investment Company Institute in a comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
As assets of management companies experience a rebound, directors should be aware that their profitability is still lagging as of the second quarter of 2009, according to Management Practice.
The Securities and Exchange Commission's strategic plan for 2010-2015 omits any reference to modernizing the duties of fund board members--a subject the SEC has been working on for some time.
Industry groups are using social media sites to reach directors.
The Independent Directors Council is enhancing its focus on newer directors at its Investment Company Directors Conference Nov. 11-13 in Amelia Island, Fla.
The Mutual Fund Directors Forum is focusing on elements of the Jones v. Harris case and questions that have arisen from the recent market turmoil for its fourth annual Directors' Institute Jan. 26-28 in Coral Gables, Fla.
The Independent Directors Council and the Mutual Fund Directors Forum both have come out in support of a Securities and Exchange Commission proposal on enhancing board disclosures involving objective and factual information, but differed in their support of requiring disclosures on the board's role in risk management.
The Independent Directors Council has released a paper for directors focusing on board oversight of compliance.
Paul Schott Stevens, president of the Investment Company Institute, is calling for some clarification of the Obama Administration's Consumer Federal Protection Agency.
The Investment Company Institute has released a compendium of papers focusing on valuation guidance issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The concept of a floating rate money market fund--which certain officials at the Securities and Exchange Commission favor --has been rebuffed by the head of the mutual fund lobby.
The Independent Directors Council recently turned five years old and took the opportunity to put together a compendium of papers covering topics from implementing the independent chair to oversight of derivatives and an introduction to valuation.
The Mutual Fund Directors Forum is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to steer clear of changing radically the structure of money market funds and focus instead on making tweaks to Rule 2a-7.
A discussion of the future of money market funds, hosted by the American Enterprise Institute, ended in agreement that a floating rate money fund wouldn't sell.
Consumer groups Fund Democracy and the Consumer Federation of America have come out in support of the Securities and Exchange Commission's push for the Reserve Primary Fund to distribute its assets to shareholders rather than use the assets to pay fees to the fund manager.
Fund Democracy and the Consumer Federation of America are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to take action on 12b-1 fee reform, arguing its decision to defer action would affect investor protection.
The oversight of subadvisors can be a challenge for boards because of the lack of hearty data a fund's regular advisor usually offers up.
Suggestions from the Investment Company Institute on money market funds highlight the importance of the board and push for changes that will more clearly define the board's role in oversight of the funds.