Annual Report 1968
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~p..ND~ f~"G"xx~/p+~ SECURITIES AND ~ ~ . ~ EXCHANGE COMMISSION ..(b#MISS\O~.. 34!!l Annual Report 1968 For the Fiscal Year Ended June 30th SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Headquarters Office 500 North Capitol Street Washington, D.C. 20549 COMMISSIONERS MANUEL F. COHEN, Ohairman HUGH F. OWENS HAMER H. BunGE FRANCIS M. WHEAT RICHARD B. SMITH ORVAL L. DuBoIS, Secretary II :For sale by tbe Superintendent of Doeumenta, U.B. Government PrInting omee Wasblniton. D.O. 20420. PrIee $1.00 (paper cover) LEITER OF TRANSMITI'AL SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C., January 3, 1969 Sm: On behalf of the Securities and Exchange Commission, I have the honor to transmit to you the Thirty-Fourth Annual Report of the Commission covering the fiscal year July 1, 1967 to June 30, 1968, in accordance with the provisions of Section 23 (b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; Section 23 of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935; Section 46 (a) of the Investment Com- pany Act of 1940; Section 216 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940; Section 3 of the Act of June 29, 1949, amending the Bretton Woods Agreement Act; Section l1(b) of the Inter-American Development Bank Act; and Section 11(b) of the Asian Development Bank Act. Respectfully, MANUEL F. COHEN, Ohairman. THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE, THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Washington, D.O. ill TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Commissioners and principal staff officera., ___________________________ XI Regional and branch officea.; _______ _________________________ XII Biographies of Commisslonera.; __________________ _______________ XIII Foreword_________________________________________________________ XVII PART I IMPORTANT RECENT DEVELOPMENTS_______________________ 1 Structure and level of commission rates__________________________ 1 Study of institutional investors__________________________________ 3 Mutual fund Iegislation., _ _ _________________ _______________ 4 The Texas Gulf Sulphur and Merrill Lynch decisiollS_______________ 6 The takeover bid bilL__________________________________________ 9 Expediting of registration statements____________________________ 11 Disclosure study _ _ _________________________________ 12 Additional financial disclosure by diversified companies_____________ 13 Broker-dealer financial reports., , _ _____ _______________________ 14 Automation of over-the-counter quotations., __ _ 15 "Back office" problema.; , ______________________________________ 16 PART II FULL DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE ISSUERS OF SECURlTIES__ _ _ _ _ 18 A. Disclosure in connection with public offerings___________________ 19 Type of information included in registration statement_________ 19 Adoption of short form for registration of securities of certain issuers_________________________________________________ 20 Proposed guides for preparation and filing of registration state- ments__________________________________________________ 20 Amendments to rules relating to disclosure detrimental to na- tional defense____ ____ __________ __________ 21 Adoption of rules relating to industrial revenue bonds. 21 Joint release relating to real estate syndications______________ 22 Amendment of rule relating to contents of prospectus used after nine months; _ _______ _____ _______ 23 Adoption of rule relating to registration by certain successor issuers_________________________________________________ 23 Amendment of "no-sale" rule_______________________________ 23 Staff examination of registration statements___________________ 24 Time required to complete registration________________________ 24 Statistics regarding registration statements filed_ ______________ 25 Statistics regarding securities registered., _ _ ___________________ 27 Stop order proceedings_____________________________________ 30 Examinations and investigations_____ ___ __ 31 Exemption from registration of small issues___________________ 31 Exempt offerings under Regulation A______________________ 32 Reports of sales_____________________________________ 32 Suspension of exemption______________________________ 33 v VI TABLE OF CONTENTS FULL DISCLOSUREUOF INFORMATION ABOUT THE ISSUERS OF SECURITIES-Continued A. Disclosure in connection with public offerings-Continued Page Exempt offerings under Regulation B______________________ 33 Reports of sales________ __ ___ _ 34 Exempt offerings under Regulation E______________________ 34 Exempt offerings under Regulation F _ 34 Proposed exemption for securities of District of Columbia local development companies__________________________ 35 B. Continuing disclosure requirements____________________________ 35 Registration of securities on exchanges_______________________ 35 Registration of over-the-counter securities____________________ 36 Exemptions from registration___________________________ 37 Periodic reports , __ _ ___ ___ 38 Proxy sollcltatlona.; ___ ___ _ 39 Scope and nature of proxy regulation____________________ 39 Adoption of amendments to proxy and information rulesc , , 40 Statistics relating to proxy and information statements_____ 41 Stockholders' proposals_____ _ __ ___________ 42 Ratio of soliciting to nonsoliciting companies______________ 42 Proxy contests________________________________________ 42 Insiders' security holdings and transactions___________________ 43 Ownership reports., , __ ___ _____ 43 Amendment of rule relating to determination of 10 percent ownership__________________________________________ 43 Recovery of short-swing trading profits__________________ 44 Changes in rules exempting transactions from short-swing tradingpro~ons----------------------------------- 44 Investigations with respect to reporting and proxy provlslonev.,., 45 Proceedings to obtain compliance with Exchange Act registra- tion or reporting requirements_____________________________ 45 Summary suspension of trading., ; ___ ______________ ___ 46 C. Accounting and auditing matters_____________________________ 48 The work of the Accounting Principles Board_________________ 49 Relations with the accounting profession and the public________ 50 Other current developments_________________________________ 51 Resignation of accountants from practice before the Cornmisslon , 53 D. Civil litigation involving disclosure matters____________________ 53 E. Criminal prosecutions involving disclosure violations____________ 54 F. Exemption for securities of international banks_________________ 56 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development_______ 56 Inter-American Development Bank__________________________ 58 Asian Development Bank___________________________________ 59 G. Trust Indenture Act of 1939_________________________________ 60 PART III REGULATION OF SECURITIES MARKETS_____________________ 62 Regulation of exchanges_____ ______ ___ ___________ 62 Registration and exemption of exchanges_____________________ 62 Review of exchange rules and procedures_____________________ 63 Revisions in exchange member trading rules__________________ 63 Revisions in listing and delisting standards___________________ 64 Dellsting of securities from exchanges________________________ 65 Inspections of exchanges____________________________________ 67 TABLE OF CONTENTS vn REGULATION OF SECURITIES MARKETS-Continued Pap Statistics relating to securities traded on exchanges________________ 67 Number of issuers and securities_____________________________ 67 Market value of securities available for trading________________ 68 Volume of securities traded_________________________________ 69 Foreign stocks on exchanges - _____ 69 Comparative exchange statistics_____________________________ 70 Block distributions reported by exchanges____________________ 72 Unlisted trading privileges on exchanges______________________ 72 Over-the-counter trading In common stocks traded on national securities exchanges.L; _______ _______ _________ 74 Statistical studies_____ ____ ___ ____ _ ___ 75 Issues registered under the Securities Act of 1933______________ 75 New securities offerings; ___ __ __ ________ 75 Individualli' saving_________________________________________ 75 Private noninsured pension funds____________________________ 76 Stock transactions of financial institutions____________________ 76 FinancIal position of corporations____________________________ 76 Plant and equipment expenditures___________________________ 76 Directory ofregistered companies_________ ___________________ 76 Stock DlSrketdata_________________________________________ 77 Cost of flotation of securities issues__________________________ 77 PART IV CONTROL OF IMPROPER PRACTICES IN SECURITIES MAR- }(ETS_________________________________________________________ 79 Regulation of broker-dealers and investment advisers______________ 79 Registration, financial responsibility, record maintenance and financial reporting requirements___________________________ 79 Registration__________________________________________ 79 Capital requirements with respect to broker-dealers________ 82 Financial reports of broker-dealers_______________________ 83 Regulation of broker-dea1ers who are not members of regis- tered securities association____________________________ 83 Detection of improper practices_____________________________ 86 Public complainta, ____ _ _____ _____________ 86 Inspections___________________________________________ 86 Section of securities violations_______________________ 87 Use of computer for name searches______________________ 87 Investigations_____________________________________________ 87 Imposition of sanctions_____________________________________