SOX Center

Phoenix, a new computer system, should simplify tracking, collecting, and distributing billions of dollars of penalties, says Chairman Cox in his budget statement.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is creating a new office dedicated to disbursing money to investors harmed in securities-fraud cases.

Under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC became the fund holder for the disgorgement and fines it collects in such cases. While the regulator has done a good job of collecting and putting aside the cash, it has fallen behind with getting the money back to harmed investors, according to SEC chairman Christopher Cox. On Tuesday, Cox acknowledged that “too much money is still undisbursed.”

The commission has struggled in identifying claimants and keeping track of the funds, according to Cox. As a result, the SEC is creating the new office and a new computer system, he said during a Congressional appropriations meeting where he discussed President Bush’s proposed $905 million allotment for the SEC’s 2008 budget.

CFO.com: SEC Unit Eyes Swifter Fraud Payouts

The European alternative to the Alternative Investment Market will be on a road show in London this week in search of new investors.

Alternext, which is owned by Euronext and hosts listings in four other European capitals, denied it will be trying to take business away from AIM.

However it will be targeting firms who wish to invest in London’s less-regulated market.

Director of listings and issuers of Alternext, Martine Charbonnier, said the greatest potential sources of companies listings on Alternext were developing countries and the US, where smaller businesses have difficulty in listing due to the heavy regulation of Sarbanes-Oxley.

AccountancyAge: Rival to AIM hits London

On the heels of stronger-than-expected economic growth numbers and ahead of the Federal Reserve announcement on interest rates, President Bush on Wednesday told a Wall Street audience that a strong economy worthy of investors’ confidence requires free trade, business regulation that’s fair but not oppressive, and better transparency in terms of executive pay.

The president also commended the creation of Sarbanes-Oxley - a law passed in the wake of the Enron scandal to create more transparency in corporate accounting. But, he said, compliance with the law has proven very costly for companies and may discourage some from listing on stock exchanges.

“A strong economy rests on strong and flexible capital markets. … Excess litigation and over-regulation threaten to make our markets less attractive to investors. …. We need to change the way the law is implemented,” Bush said.

cnnMoney: Bush: Mind CEO pay, change how Sarbanes-Oxley works

The much maligned new rules are a big hit with investors

There has been no shortage of public outcry over Sarbanes-Oxley, the controversial 2002 accounting reform legislation that requires top corporate executives to fill out reams of new forms and personally certify their financial reports. SarbOx, say its critics, adds millions in compliance costs, makes life miserable for corporate directors, and encourages companies to bolt to foreign stock exchanges. The complaints have been so passionate that regulators are now planning to loosen the rules, probably before the year is out.

Not so fast, says a growing chorus of investors. Lost amid all the boos over SarbOx, they say, are some major benefits. The biggest: SarbOx and related reforms have produced much more reliable corporate financial statements, which investors rely on when deciding whether to buy or sell shares. For them, SarbOx has been a godsend.

What’s more, says Duncan W. Richardson, chief equity investment officer at Eaton Vance Management and overseer of $80 billion in stockholdings, even the act’s much disparaged requirements for testing internal financial controls could drive gains in corporate productivity and profits. Says Donald J. Peters, a portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price Group: “The accounting reforms have been a win.”

BWonline:Not Everyone Hates SarbOx