U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Division of

Enforcement

ANNUAL REPORT

A LOOK BACK AT FISCAL YEAR 2017
Disclaimer

This is a report of the staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 

The Commission has expressed no view regarding the analysis, findings, or 

conclusions contained herein.
Report available on the Web at www.sec.gov/reports

CONTENTS

Message from the Co-Directors.....................................................................................................................................................1

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................................................................4

Initiatives.............................................................................................................................................................................................................4

The Cyber Unit..........................................................................................................................................................................4

The Retail Strategy Task Force .....................................................................................................................................5

Discussion and Analysis of Fiscal Year 2017........................................................................................................................6

Overall Results..........................................................................................................................................................................6

Types of Cases..........................................................................................................................................................................7

Disgorgement and Penalties Ordered....................................................................................................................7

Individual Accountability................................................................................................................................................. 11

Relief Obtained....................................................................................................................................................................... 11

Noteworthy Enforcement Actions............................................................................................................................12

Appendix..........................................................................................................................................................................................................15

DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 1

MESSAGE FROM THE CO-DIRECTORS

Chairman Jay Clayton appointed us as Co-Directors of the 

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of 

Enforcement in June 2017. We approach our roles guided by 

one overarching principle: Vigorous enforcement of the federal 

securities laws is critical to combat wrongdoing, compensate 

harmed investors, and maintain confidence in the integrity and 

fairness of our markets.

We bring to this task our combined experiences in the U.S. 

Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, the Commission’s Enforcement 

Division, and private law firm practice. With that background, 

we asked ourselves at the outset: What goals should we pursue? 

The question almost answers itself: protect investors, deter 

misconduct, and punish wrongdoers. But how to achieve those 

objectives is the real question. While we necessarily police a 

broad landscape and have numerous areas of focus, at a high 

level, our decision making is guided by five core principles.

Principle 1: Focus on the Main Street Investor.

Chairman Clayton has said that the Commission’s analysis of 

whether it is accomplishing its mission “starts and ends with 

the long-term interests of the Main Street investor.” We agree. 

Retail investors are often not only the most prevalent participants in our marketplace, but also the most vulnerable and 

least able to weather financial loss. We will continue to address the kinds of misconduct that 

traditionally have affected retail investors: accounting fraud, sales of unsuitable products and 

the pursuit of unsuitable trading strategies, pump and dump frauds, and Ponzi schemes, to 

name just a few. 

We recently announced the formation of a Retail Strategy Task Force to develop effective 

strategies to address harm to retail investors. The task force will work closely with the 

Commission’s examination staff, as well as the Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, 

and use data analytics to identify areas of risk to retail investors.

As we enhance our focus on retail investors, we will continue to vigorously pursue cases 

against financial institutions and intermediaries. We do not face a binary choice between 

protecting Main Street and policing Wall Street. The Commission has recently brought cases 

against Wall Street firms for a wide variety of misconduct, including: failing to ensure that 

retail clients understood the risks of complex financial products; overcharging millions in 

advisory fees; and putting investors in high-fee mutual fund share classes, when identical, 

lower-cost shares were available. Simply stated, our oversight of Wall Street is most effective, 

and protects those who need it most, when viewed through a lens focused on retail investors.

Stephanie Avakian 

CO-DIRECTOR

Steven Peikin 

CO-DIRECTOR
2 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Principle 2: Focus On Individual Accountability.

The Commission has long pursued misconduct by both institutions and individuals. 

And it will continue to do so. But common sense and experience teach that individual 

accountability more effectively deters wrongdoing. The vigorous pursuit of individual 

wrongdoers must be the key feature of any effective enforcement program. That pursuit 

will send strong messages of both general and specific deterrence and strip wrongdoers of 

their ill-gotten gains. In many instances, we must also seek to protect investors by barring 

serious wrongdoers and recidivists from our markets. 

In the six months since Chairman Clayton took office, pursuing individuals has continued 

to be the rule, not the exception. One or more individuals have been charged in more than 

80 percent of the standalone enforcement actions the Commission has brought. To be 

sure, this focus on individuals consumes more of our limited resources; with more to lose, 

individuals are more likely to litigate with the Commission. But that price is worth paying.

Principle 3: Keep Pace With Technological Change.

Technology has dramatically transformed our markets. So too has it transformed the ability 

of wrongdoers to engage in cyber-enabled misconduct. Just a few years ago, it was difficult 

to imagine a market manipulation scheme accomplished by hacking into the electronic 

accounts of others and then forcing trades to pump up a stock price. Or the brokering of 

stolen inside information on the so-called “dark web,” paid for in untraceable cryptocurrency. Yet these are the sort of schemes we now frequently encounter.

As nefarious actors take advantage of technological change and market evolution, the 

Commission’s enforcement efforts must respond with purpose and vigor. To that end, we 

formed a specialized Cyber Unit to consolidate our substantial cyber-related expertise. The 

Cyber Unit includes experts in cyber intrusions, distributed ledger technology, and the dark 

web. Its members investigate and prosecute these increasing technologically-driven violations 

and coordinate with the Department of Justice and other criminal authorities.

Principle 4: Impose Sanctions That Most Effectively Further Enforcement Goals.

Sanctions are critical to driving behavior, and we have a wide array of tools available to 

further our objectives. Our remedies include: obtaining monetary relief in the form of 

disgorgement, penalties, and asset freezes; barring wrongdoers from working in the securities industry; and, when appropriate, obtaining more tailored relief, such as specific undertakings, admissions of wrongdoing, and monitoring or other compliance requirements. We 

do not believe in a formulaic or statistics-oriented approach. Instead, in every case we will 

consider the package of remedies that will be most appropriate in the matter at hand and 

more broadly.

Principle 5: Constantly Assess The Allocation Of Our Resources.

The volume of potential securities violations reflects the multi-trillion-dollar size of our 

markets. Last year alone, Commission personnel reviewed more than 16,000 tips, largely 

from the general public, and more than 20,000 reports of suspicious activity filed by brokerdealers and other entities.
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 3

The Enforcement Division is the Commission’s largest division, but employs fewer than 

1,200 professionals. As a result, we must constantly assess whether we are allocating our 

resources to address the most significant market risks and in the most effective manner, 

keeping front of mind the violators who pose the most serious threats to investors and 

market integrity.

Evaluating Our Efforts.

Judging the effectiveness of our resource allocation is a complex task. Traditionally, 

many have judged the Commission on quantitative metrics. Measured by those standards, 

Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 was successful. The Commission brought 754 actions and obtained 

judgments and orders totaling more than $3.7 billion in disgorgement and penalties. Significantly, it also returned a record $1.07 billion to harmed investors, suspended trading in the 

securities of 309 companies, and barred or suspended more than 625 individuals.

While such statistics provide some kind of measurement, they provide a limited picture of 

the quality, nature, and effectiveness of our efforts. For example, returning $100,000 to 

several dozen defrauded investors has little impact on our overall statistics, but can be lifechanging for those investors. And, of course, violations that are prevented or deterred are 

never reflected in statistics. We also note that some cases take many years from initiation to 

resolution. Note that in 2017, $1.07 billion was distributed to harmed investors while 

$140 million was distributed in 2016, but much of the effort that resulted in the 2017 

numbers occurred in prior years. 

As a result, we believe the Commission’s enforcement program should be judged both 

quantitatively and qualitatively and over various time periods. Have we focused on the most 

serious violations? Have we obtained meaningful punishments that deter unlawful conduct? 

Have we incapacitated wrongdoers? Are we recouping ill-gotten gains and returning money 

to investors? We believe the course we have set, and the principles we are following, answer 

all those questions in the affirmative.

This report is part of our effort to measure our effectiveness and our progress toward 

achieving these five objectives. In this report, we discuss the Enforcement Division’s activity 

over the past fiscal year—activity that we believe should be assessed not just quantitatively, 

but also qualitatively.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Avakian and Steven Peikin

Co-Directors, Division of Enforcement

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

November 15, 2017
4 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

INTRODUCTION

The ongoing efforts made by the Division of Enforcement (Enforcement) to deter misconduct and punish securities law violators are critical to safeguarding millions of investors 

and instilling confidence in the integrity of the U.S. markets. Each year, Enforcement 

brings hundreds of civil enforcement actions against individuals and entities for fraud 

and other misconduct. The substantial remedies we obtain are important. They protect 

investors by deterring future wrongdoing, and when we obtain disgorgement of ill-gotten 

gains, harmed investors are often compensated. We also seek bars that prevent wrongdoers from working in the securities industry, as we believe holding individuals accountable 

for their improper actions is important and effective. It is a privilege to work in the securities industry and it is no place for bad actors.

INITIATIVES

Enforcement has a broad mandate with responsibility for covering broad ground 

across the securities markets. But, at the most basic level, the Division’s area of greatest 

focus—protection of retail investors—has not changed over time. Today, this perspective 

is driving our resources to: risks posed by cyber-related misconduct; issues raised by the 

activities of investment advisers, broker-dealers, and other registrants; financial reporting 

and disclosure issues involving public companies; and insider trading and market abuse. 

These issues will be priorities for the Division, and we will continue to pursue cases and 

advance efforts to protect retail investors and market integrity. 

In an effort to more closely align our allocation of resources with two of our key priorities—specifically, protecting retail investors and combatting cyber-related threats—at 

the end of FY 2017, the Division announced the creation of a Cyber Unit and a Retail 

Strategy Task Force.

The Cyber Unit

To combat cyber-related threats, which are among the greatest risks facing our securities 

markets, the Division formed a Cyber Unit. The Cyber Unit combines Enforcement's 

substantial, existing cyber-related expertise and its proficiency in digital ledger technology. 

The Unit initially will focus its efforts on the following key areas:

• Market manipulation schemes involving false information spread through electronic 

and social media;

• Hacking to obtain material nonpublic information and trading on that information;

• Violations involving distributed ledger technology and initial coin offerings (ICOs);

• Misconduct perpetrated using the dark web;

• Intrusions into retail brokerage accounts; and

• Cyber-related threats to trading platforms and other critical market infrastructure.
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 5

Although Enforcement has been focused on many of these issues for some time, the Cyber 

Unit formalizes the Division’s efforts to develop and apply the Commission’s considerable 

expertise in this rapidly-developing area.

While the end result of the Division’s work is often a recommendation that the Commission take enforcement action, we also pursue alternatives where appropriate. The 

Division’s recent activity in cyber-related actions provides two examples. First, in recognition of the growing use of distributed ledger technology and ICOs, in July 2017, the 

Commission released a Report of Investigation that concluded that the federal securities 

laws may apply to certain initial coin offerings or other distributed ledger or blockchainenabled means for raising capital, depending on the facts and circumstance.1

 Second, in 

early November 2017, Enforcement and the Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) issued a public statement concerning endorsements of 

stocks and other investments by celebrities and others on social media networks.2

The Retail Strategy Task Force

Effective enforcement of the federal securities laws is critical to safeguarding the long-term 

interests of retail investors. To focus the Division on the type of misconduct that often 

targets retail investors, the Division formed the Retail Strategy Task Force. The Task 

Force will be dedicated to developing effective strategies and methods to identify potential 

harm to retail investors. The Task Force builds on the Division’s past efforts to protect 

retail investors and will draw from the Division’s deep experience in the area. It is focused, 

in particular, on harnessing the Commission’s ability to use technology and data analytics to identify large-scale wrongdoing. The Task Force also works closely with OCIE to 

identify areas of risk to retail investors, and with the Commission’s Office of Investor 

Education and Advocacy to educate retail investors about those risks.

The Task Force will focus on wrongdoing implicating the microcap market, as well as 

Ponzi schemes and offering frauds, where victims typically are retail investors. But the 

Task Force also will focus on identifying misconduct in other areas, such as that which 

occurs at the intersection of investment professionals and retail investors, which can 

present significant opportunity for misconduct. Some examples of this type of misconduct include steering clients to higher-cost mutual fund share classes, abuses in wrapfee accounts, investment adviser recommendations to buy and hold highly volatile 

products like inverse exchange-traded funds, suitability issues involving the sale of 

structured products to retail investors, and abusive sales practices such as churning and 

excessive trading.

1 www.sec.gov/litigation/investreport/34-81207.pdf.

2 www.sec.gov/news/public-statement/statement-potentially-unlawful-promotion-icos.
6 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF 

FISCAL YEAR 2017

Overall Results

Even in the midst of transition in leadership, FY 2017 was a successful and impactful year 

for the Enforcement Division. The Commission brought a diverse mix of 754 enforcement actions, of which:

• 446 were “standalone” actions brought in federal court or as administrative proceedings;

• 196 were “follow-on” proceedings seeking bars based on the outcome of Commission 

actions or actions by criminal authorities or other regulators; and

• 112 were proceedings to deregister public companies—typically microcap—that were 

delinquent in their Commission filings.

Detailed results from FY 2017 are set forth below. FY 2016 results are also reflected 

below for comparison. 

The number of standalone enforcement actions decreased in FY 2017 when compared 

to FY 2016. The bulk of that difference is attributable to 84 actions brought in FY 2016 

(roughly 15 percent of standalone actions that year) as part of the Commission’s Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation (MCDC) Initiative, a voluntary self-reporting 

program that targeted material misstatements and omissions in municipal bond offering 

documents. The MCDC Initiative concluded in FY 2016.

Enforcement Actions Filed in 

Fiscal Year 2017 and 2016 

(Including MCDC)

FY 2017 FY 2016

Standalone Enforcement Actions 446 548

Follow-on Admin. Proceedings 196 195

Delinquent Filings 112 125

Total Actions 754 868

Enforcement Actions Filed in

 Fiscal Year 2017 and 2016 

(Excluding MCDC)

FY 2017 FY 2016

Standalone Enforcement Actions 446 464

Follow-on Admin. Proceedings 196 195

Delinquent Filings 112 125

Total Actions 754 784
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 7

Types of Cases

As the chart below illustrates, consistent with FY 2016, a significant number of the 

Commission’s 446 standalone cases in FY 2017 concerned investment advisory issues, 

securities offerings, and issuer reporting/accounting and auditing, each comprising 

approximately 20 percent of the overall number of standalone actions. The Commission 

also continued to bring actions relating to market manipulation, insider trading, and 

broker-dealers, with each comprising approximately 10 percent of the overall number of 

standalone actions, as well as other areas.

0 20 40 60 80 100

Actions Filed

2016

2017

Issuer Reporting / 

Audit & Accounting

Securities Offering

Inv. Adviser / Inv. Company

Broker Dealer

Insider Trading

Market Manipulation

Public Finance Abuse

FCPA

Miscellaneous

Transfer Agent

NRSRO

A breakdown of the number and percentage of the types of actions brought in FY 2016 

and 2017 is in the attached appendix.

Disgorgement and Penalties Ordered

In FY 2017, the Commission continued to obtain significant monetary judgments against 

parties in enforcement actions. All told, parties in the Commission’s actions and proceedings were ordered to pay a total of $2.9 

billion in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, 

an increase over the prior year. Penalties 

imposed totaled $832 million, a decrease 

from the prior year. Total monetary relief 

ordered in FY 2017 declined approximately seven percent from the prior year.

Total Money Ordered (in millions)

FY 2017 FY 2016

Penalties $832 $1,273

Disgorgement $2,957 $2,809

Total $3,789 $4,083
8 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

As the below tables demonstrate, the five percent of cases that involve the largest penalties 

and disgorgement account for the vast majority of all financial remedies the Commission 

obtains. Yet the remaining 95 percent of cases not only constitute the bulk of the Enforcement Division’s overall activity, but also address the broadest array of conduct. This is one 

illustration of how statistical assessments present an incomplete picture.

Penalties Ordered (in Millions)

2017 2016

Total Pct Total Pct

Top 5% Largest Cases $514 62% $954 75%

Remaining 95% Cases $318 38% $320 25%

Total $832 100% $1,274 100%

Disgorgement Ordered (in Millions)

2017 2016

Total Pct Total Pct

Top 5% Largest Cases $2,046 69% $1,848 66%

Remaining 95% Cases $911 31% $961 34%

Total $2,957 100% $2,809 100%
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 9

Experience has shown that in most years, a significant percentage of the disgorgement 

and penalty totals are attributed to a small number of cases. As illustrated below, this was 

the case in FY 2016 and 2017.

Disgorgement Orders Over $100 Million in Fiscal Year 2017

Party Amount

Telia Company AB $457 million 

Braskem S.A. $325 million 

Teva Pharm. Industries Ltd. $236 million 

Steve Chen, et al. $145 million 

JPMorgan Chase & Co. $131 million 

Total Disgorgement Orders Over $100 M $1.294 billion

Percentage of Total Disgorgement Ordered in FY 2017 44%

Disgorgement Orders Over $100 Million in Fiscal Year 2016

Party Amount

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al. $139 million 

Trevor G. Cook, et al. $264 million 

Louis V. Schooler $148 million 

VimpelCom Ltd. $375 million 

The Bank of New York Mellon $133 million 

Och-Ziff Capital Mgmt Group LLC, et al. $201 million 

Total Disgorgement Orders Over $100 M $1.260 billion

Percentage of Total Disgorgement Ordered in FY 2016 45%
10 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Penalty Orders Over $50 Million in Fiscal Year 2017

Party Amount

Credit Suisse AG $90 million 

State Street Bank & Trust Co. $75 million 

Ming Xu $57 million 

Total Penalty Orders Over $50 Million $222 million

Percentage of Total Penalties Ordered in FY 2017 27%

Penalty Orders Over $50 Million in Fiscal Year 2016

Party Amount

Merrill Lynch $358 million 

Weatherford Int’l $140 million

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al. $128 million 

Monsanto Company $ 80 million

Total Penalty Orders Over $50 Million $706 million

Percentage of Total Penalties Ordered in FY 2016 55%

More information about the actions that led to these disgorgement and penalty orders is 

available in the appendix.
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 11

Finally, a substantial amount of money was returned to harmed investors in FY 2017. 

In the past two years combined, the Commission distributed $1.21 billion to victims of 

wrongdoing. The majority of funds were distributed in FY 2017, when the Commission 

returned a record $1.07 billion to harmed investors.

Money Distributed to 

Harmed Investors 

(in millions)

FY 2017 FY 2016

$1,073 $140

A significant portion of the total funds distributed in FY 2017 

($814 million) came from four Fair Funds—a $494 million 

disbursement from the CR Intrinsic Investors fund,3 a $200 

million disbursement from a JPMorgan Chase fund,4 and a 

$120 million disbursement from two related Credit Suisse 

RMBS funds.5 The balance of the funds distributed in 

FY 2017 ($259 million) came from 48 other distribution funds comprised of 28 Fair 

Funds ($242 million) and 20 Disgorgement Funds ($17 million).

Individual Accountability

Individual accountability is critical to an effective enforcement program. In FY 2017, 

73 percent of the Commission’s standalone actions involved charges against one or more 

individuals, the same percentage as in FY 2016 (excluding the 84 actions attributable to 

the MCDC Initiative).6

Relief Obtained

In every enforcement action, the Division seeks appropriately tailored sanctions that 

further enforcement goals. In addition to disgorgement and penalties, there are a wide 

array of potential remedies available. In each case, the Division seeks those remedies that 

will be the most meaningful. Some of these remedies are discussed in more detail below.

Trading Suspensions

Under the federal securities laws, the Commission can suspend trading in a stock for 

10 days and generally prohibit a broker-dealer from soliciting investors to buy or sell the 

stock again until certain reporting requirements are met. Trading suspensions are a significant enforcement tool and greatly enhance our ability to protect investors from possible 

fraud. In FY 2017, the Commission suspended trading in the securities of 309 issuers, a 

55 percent increase over FY 2016, in order to combat potential market manipulation and 

microcap fraud threats to investors.

3 SEC v. CR Intrinsic Investors, LLC, et al., No. 12-cv-8466 (S.D.N.Y.).

4 JPMorgan Chase & Co., Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-15507.

5 Credit Suisse Securities USA, LLC, et al., Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-15098

6 When MCDC-related actions are included in FY 2016’s count, 61 percent of the Commission’s standalone actions

involved charges against one or more individuals.
12 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Court-Ordered Asset Freezes

Court-ordered prejudgment relief in the form of asset freezes is important to the Commission’s ability to protect investors. These freezes prevent alleged wrongdoers from dissipating assets that could be distributed to harmed investors. Wrongdoers often are adept at 

hiding and moving assets offshore, and the Commission’s ability to obtain meaningful 

financial remedies, and to return money to harmed investors, therefore may depend on 

the ability to obtain an asset freeze at an early stage. These circumstances require seeking 

federal court action on an emergency basis. In FY 2017, the Commission sought 35 

court-ordered asset freezes, a slight increase from FY 2016, when the Commission sought 

33 asset freezes.

Bars and Suspensions Imposed

Bars and suspensions also are invaluable tools. One of the most important things that 

the Commission can do proactively to protect investors and the market is to remove bad 

actors from positions where they can engage in future wrongdoing. Bars and suspensions 

are the means by which the Commission prevents wrongdoers from serving as officers or 

directors of public companies, dealing in penny stocks, associating with registered entities 

such as broker-dealers and investment advisers, or appearing or practicing before the 

Commission as accountants or attorneys.

Enforcement actions resulted in over 625 bars and suspensions of wrongdoers in FY 2017 

and over 650 bars and suspensions in FY 2016.

Noteworthy Enforcement Actions

While the Division’s efforts resulted in many noteworthy enforcement actions in FY 2017, 

the matters described below give a sense of some of the actions the Commission brought 

in areas of the Division’s greatest focus, as well as actions in other areas to demonstrate 

the breadth of the landscape the Division covers.

In FY 2017, the Commission brought charges against:

Direct Impact on Retail Investors and Conduct of Registrants

• Thirteen individuals allegedly involved in two Long Island-based cold calling scams that 

bilked more than 100 victims out of more than $10 million through high-pressure sales 

tactics and lies about penny stocks.7

• Twenty-seven individuals and entities behind various alleged stock promotion schemes 

that left investors with the impression they were reading independent, unbiased analyses 

on investing websites while writers actually were being secretly compensated for touting 

company stock.8

• Barclays Capital for charging improper advisory fees and mutual fund sales charges to 

clients, who were overcharged by nearly $50 million. The firm agreed to pay more than 

$97 million in disgorgement and penalties to settle the Commission’s claims.9

7 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-124.

8 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-79.

9 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-98.
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 13

• Morgan Stanley Smith Barney related to single inverse ETF investments it recommended to advisory clients. The firm agreed to pay an $8 million penalty and admit 

wrongdoing to settle these charges.10

• The investment services subsidiary of SunTrust Banks for collecting more than 

$1.1 million in avoidable fees from clients by improperly recommending more expensive share classes of various mutual funds when cheaper shares of the same funds 

were available. The firm agreed to pay a $1.1 million penalty to settle the charges, and 

separately began refunding the overcharged fees plus interest to affected clients after the 

Division’s investigation began.11

• Investment management firm Pacific Investment Management Company for misleading 

investors about the performance of one its first actively managed exchange-traded funds 

and failing to accurately value certain fund securities. The firm agreed to retain an 

independent compliance consultant and pay nearly $20 million to settle the charges.12

• BNY Mellon for miscalculating its risk-based capital ratios and risk-weighted assets 

reported to investors. The firm agreed to pay a $6.6 million penalty.13

• Three New York-based brokers for allegedly making unsuitable recommendations that 

resulted in substantial losses to customers and hefty commissions for the brokers. One 

of the brokers agreed to pay more than $400,000 to settle the charges.14

• Two New York-based brokers with allegedly fraudulently using an in-and-out trading 

strategy that was unsuitable for customers in order to generate substantial commissions 

for themselves.15

Cyber-Related Misconduct

• Three Chinese traders for allegedly trading on hacked, nonpublic, market-moving 

information stolen from two prominent law firms, making almost $3 million in 

illegal profits.16

• A Virginia-based mechanical engineer for allegedly scheming to manipulate the price 

of Fitbit stock by making a phony regulatory filing.17

Insider Trading

• A partner at a Hong Kong-based private equity firm who allegedly amassed more than 

$29 million in illegal profits by insider trading in advance of the April 2016 acquisition 

of DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. by Comcast Corp.18

• A former government employee turned political intelligence consultant and three others 

for engaging in an alleged insider trading scheme involving tips of nonpublic information about government plans to cut Medicare reimbursement rates, which affected the 

stock prices of certain publicly traded medical providers or suppliers.19

10 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-46.html.

11 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-165.

12 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-252.html.

13 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-9.html.

14 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-180.

15 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-2.html.

16 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-280.html.

17 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-107.

18 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-44.html.

19 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-109.
14 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Issuer Reporting and Disclosure Issues and Auditor Misconduct

• Ernst & Young LLP, which agreed to pay more than $11.8 million to settle claims 

related to failed audits of an oil services company that used deceptive income tax 

accounting to inflate earnings, as well as two of the firm’s partners, who agreed to 

suspensions from practicing before the Commission.20

• KPMG LLP and an audit partner for failing to properly audit the financial statements 

of an oil and gas company, resulting in investors being misinformed about the energy 

company’s value. The firm agreed to pay more than $6.2 million to settle the charges, 

and the audit partner agreed to a suspension from appearing and practicing before the 

Commission.21

• Canadian-based oil and gas company Penn West Petroleum Ltd. and three of its former 

top finance executives for their roles in an extensive, multi-year accounting fraud.22

Other Noteworthy Actions

• Petrochemical manufacturer Braskem S.A. for creating false books and records to 

conceal millions of dollars in illicit bribes paid to Brazilian government officials to win 

or retain business. The entity settled by paying $957 million to the Commission, the 

U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and authorities in Brazil and Switzerland.23

• Sweden-based telecommunications provider Telia Company AB related to violations 

of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) to win business in Uzbekistan, which the 

entity settled by paying $956 million to the Commission, DOJ, and Dutch and Swedish 

law enforcement.24

• A former official of the nation’s third-largest public pension fund and two brokers 

accused of orchestrating a pay-to-play scheme to steer billions of dollars to certain firms 

in exchange for luxury gifts, lavish vacations, and tens of thousands of dollars spent on 

illegal narcotics and prostitutes.25

• Citadel Securities LLC, which agreed to pay $22.6 million to settle claims that its 

business unit handling retail customer orders from other brokerage firms made misleading statements to them about the way it priced trades.26

• A businessman and two companies for defrauding investors in a pair of so-called ICOs 

purportedly backed by investments in real estate and diamonds.27

• A Ukraine-based trading firm, Avalon FA Ltd., accused of manipulating the U.S. 

markets hundreds of thousands of times and the New York-based brokerage firm of 

Lek Securities and its CEO who allegedly helped make it possible.28

20 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-219.html.

21 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-142.

22 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-120. 

23 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-271.html.

24 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-171.

25 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-272.html.

26 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-11.html.

27 www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-185-0.

28 www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2017-63.html.
DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT ANNUAL REPORT | 15

Breakdown of Classification of Standalone Enforcement Actions

2017 2016

Actions Pct Actions Pct

Issuer Reporting / Audit & Accounting 95 21% 93 17%

Securities Offering 94 21% 90 16%

Inv. Adviser / Inv. Company 82 18% 98 18%

Broker Dealer 53 12% 61 11%

Market Manipulation 41 9% 30 5%

Insider Trading 41 9% 45 8%

Public Finance Abuse 17 4% 97 18%

FCPA 13 3% 21 4%

Miscellaneous 7 2% 9 2%

Transfer Agent 3 1% 2 0%

NRSRO 0 0% 2 0%

Total 446 100% 548 100%

Disgorgement Orders over $100 Million Entered in Fiscal Year 2017

Party Link to Release

Steve Chen, et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2015-227.html

JPMorgan Chase & Co. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-241.html 

Braskem S.A. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-271.html 

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-277.html 

Telia Company AB www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-171

Penalty Orders over $50 Million Entered in Fiscal Year 2017

Party Link to Release

Ming Xu www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2014-60

Credit Suisse AG www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-210.html

State Street Bank & Trust Co. www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/2016/ic-32390-s.pdf 

APPENDIX
16 | U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Disgorgement Orders over $100 Million Entered in Fiscal Year 2016

Party Link to Release

Trevor G. Cook, et al. www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2009/lr21313.htm

Louis V. Schooler www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2012-2012-183htm 

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2015-283.html

The Bank of New York Mellon www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/2016/ic-32151-s.pdf

VimpelCom Ltd. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-34.html

Och-Ziff Capital Management Group 

LLC, et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-203.html

Penalty Orders over $50 Million Entered in Fiscal Year 2016

Party Link to Release

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith 

Inc., et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-128.html

Weatherford International PLC, et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-194.html

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2015-283.html

Monsanto Company www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-25.html 

VimpelCom Ltd. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-34.html 

Och-Ziff Capital Management Group 

LLC, et al. www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2016-203.html
U.S. Securities and 

Exchange Commission

100 F Street NE

Washington, DC 20549

www.sec.gov