At 9 p.m., the end of a hectic day, Robert, a successful 45-year-old million-dollar producer at a major wirehouse in downtown Manhattan, closed the door to his office, locked it, and took the elevator to the 36th floor of his office building. Despondent over recent losses his best clients suffered in a certain hedge fund over the past year, Robert had been short-tempered and adversarial with colleagues as well as with his branch manager, and threatened to leave the industry on more than one occasion. This business was crushing him. He could see no future. Not only had he let his clients and his family down, but just as important… he knew he had let himself down. When the elevator door closed behind him, he took the stairs to the roof where he breathed in the cool night air. With an empty glare in his eyes, he slowly made his way across the roof with a purposeful pace. Robert walked to the roof’s ledge, looked out across the dark city... more +

NASD Notice to Members 07-31: NASD Rule Changes to Conform with Amendments to SEC Rule 10a-1 and Regulation SHO; Compliance Date: July 6, 2007

Executive Summary
NASD is issuing this Notice to advise firms and other interested parties of conforming NASD rule changes in light of the elimination of Rule 10a-1 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (SEC Rule 10a-1) and amendments to Regulation SHO. Specifically, on July 5, 2007, NASD filed for immediate effectiveness a proposed rule change to: (1) repeal NASD Rule 5100 and IM-5100; (2) eliminate references to NASD Rule 5100 and SEC Rule 10a-1 from NASD rules; and (3) remove any “short exempt” marking requirements in NASD rules.1 NASD also is advising firms of temporary no-action relief from Rule 200(g) of Regulation SHO granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for “short... more +

The securities industry continues to fall over itself to introduce securities whose aim is to capture market share by offering greater portfolio diversification. While no one is arguing against portfolio allocation as the key to successful investing, this explosive product trend brings as much redundancy as novelty to the ongoing portfolio optimization process.

Among the dozens of new means that one can enhance risk-adjusted performance through expanding market-sector exposure, there are several fund vehicles that present an opportunity for tactically managing portfolio risk to effectively enhance risk-adjusted returns.

The advent of leveraged mutual funds has leveled the playing field for retail investment managers, who until recently have had few means of serving their clients’ alternative investment interests. Sparked by the explosive growth of the hedge fund industry, but spurned by the Securities Exchange Commission... more +