Twelve Firms to Pay More Than $63 Million Combined to Settle SEC’s Charges for Recordkeeping Failures

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against nine investment advisers and three broker-dealers for failures by the firms and their personnel to maintain and preserve electronic communications, in violation of recordkeeping provisions of the federal securities laws. The firms admitted the facts set forth in their respective SEC orders, acknowledged that their conduct violated recordkeeping provisions of the federal securities laws, agreed to pay combined civil penalties of $63.1 million, as outlined below, and have begun implementing improvements to their compliance policies and procedures to address these violations. One of the firms, as noted below, self-reported its violations and, as a result, will pay significantly lower civil penalties than it would have otherwise. Blackstone Alternative Credit Advisors LP, together with Blackstone Management Partners L.L.C. and Blackstone Real Estate Advisors L.P., agreed to pay a combined $12 million penalty; Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.