Sec, Bernard Madoff | featured news

Former Securities and Exchange Commission General Counsel David Becker had a conflict of interest when he handled Bernard Madoff legal matters for the SEC and should be criminally investigated, the agency's watchdog said on Tuesday.

It is “likely” that the SEC got rid of “some documents” from inquiries it decided not to pursue involving Bernard Madoff and such major financial firms as Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Lehman Brothers and SAC Capital, a senior SEC official said Wednesday.

U.S. securities brokers would be more closely scrutinized by accountants and be subject to stricter rules for how they handle their customers' assets under a plan proposed by federal regulators on Wednesday.

Newly released documents in the Bernard Madoff case paint a detailed picture of a feckless Securities and Exchange Commission, and an epic scam artist who was constantly amazed he did not get caught.

Accused Wall Street swindler Bernard Madoff has agreed to a permanent freeze on his assets without admitting or denying fraud charges in a civil case against him, a U.S. regulator said on Monday.

Harry Markopolos, a former financial executive who tried to blow the whistle on Bernard Madoff, told Congress that securities regulators had ignored his repeated pleas for a thorough investigation of the accused swindler's alleged $50 billion fraud.