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Misuse of off-channel apps leads to $549m in penalties from SEC, CFTC

Picture of a mobile phone with some apps showing.
Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images

The SEC and CFTC hand out sizable, combined penalties for recordkeeping and supervision failures relating to off-channel communications.

US regulators have announced a combined $549m in penalties against Wall Street firms that failed to maintain electronic records of employee communications.

The SEC announced charges against 11 firms for “widespread and longstanding failures” to maintain records, including by allowing employees to use unsupervised side channels, such as the messaging

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