The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation agreed to pay a $6.6 million penalty to settle SEC charges alleging reporting, recordkeeping and accounting failures concerning the miscalculation of risk-based capital ratios and risk-weighted assets.
The SEC found that BNY Mellon failed to take certain assets of variable interest entities ("VIEs") into account when calculating risk-based capital ratios presented in annual and quarterly reports filed with the SEC. The SEC Order specified that BNY Mellon "deviated from the regulatory capital rules and excluded these assets from its capital ratios after making a determination that the VIEs did not pose a risk to the firm." The SEC found that this deviation resulted in a failure to (i) submit accurate quarterly and annual reports to the SEC, (ii) maintain adequate books and records, and (iii) maintain a system of internal accounting controls that would have assured conformity with generally accepted accounting principles.
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