Aurelia Butler

(Reuters) – Elliott Investment Management, one of the world’s biggest hedge fund firms, on Friday sued the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to obtain more information about rule proposals that could affect how activist firms like Elliott do business.In a complaint filed on Thursday in the Washington, D.C. federal court, the firm founded by billionaire Paul Singer accused the SEC of failing to hand over records that it believes could shine light on its rulemaking process.At issue are proposed rules that would, among other things, require greater disclosures of large security-based swap positions.Some investors use swaps as a means to build stakes in companies without tipping off others, which could make investing too costly. Elliott said that while some rule changes have been made, “key” portions remain under review.”The SEC is unlawfully withholding … information to which Elliott is entitled and for which no valid disclosure exemption applies or has been properly asserted,” Elliott said.The SEC did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday. Elliott declined additional comment. Bloomberg News reported earlier about the lawsuit.Last month, the SEC said it would give activist hedge funds and other investors just five business days, down from 10 days, to reveal when they have bought more than 5% of a company’s stock.In June, the regulator strengthened rules intended to prevent anyone in the security-based swaps market from manipulating prices.Founded in 1977, Elliott managed about $59.2 billion of assets as of June 30. It is based in West Palm Beach, Florida. Singer’s net worth is $6.1 billion, according to Forbes magazine.The case is Elliott Investment Management LP v SEC, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, No. 23-03290. More

Freeland made her remarks at a press conference after a phone call with regional finance ministers to discuss the issue.Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner later on Friday said the province would not leave fellow Canadians without a stable pension and its associated benefits. “For the past several weeks, Alberta has been having an open discussion about the possibility of establishing an Alberta Pension Plan that will benefit our seniors and workers,” he said. “This will only happen if Albertans vote to do so in a referendum.”Alberta, a right-leaning province, has had a tense relationship with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s three consecutive Liberal-led governments since he took power in 2015.Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative Party (UCP) government has launched a consultation process to ask whether the oil-rich province should consider an exit from the CPP, which manages C$575 billion ($415 billion) on behalf of more than 21 million contributors and beneficiaries across Canada.Smith has said she plans to follow the consultation with a possible referendum in 2025. The Alberta government late on Thursday said in a statement that proposed legislation would guarantee the same or lower contribution rates as the CPP and the same or better benefits. The so-called Alberta Pension Protection Act would require Albertans to vote in favor of a pension plan for the province during a public referendum before the provincial government would seek to withdraw assets, the statement said.Freeland, a key member of Trudeau’s government, has asked the chief actuary to provide an estimate of the asset transfer that would be required if Alberta left the CPP based on a “reasonable interpretation” of the legislation governing the pension program. But when asked whether she found it realistic that Alberta was entitled to 53% of CPP assets in 2027, according to a study commissioned by the Alberta government, Freeland said she did not. Freeland also cautioned that the Alberta government would be required to negotiate how Canadians could live and work anywhere in Canada without jeopardizing their retirement.”Alberta would need to negotiate complex time-consuming portability agreements with the CPP and with the Quebec Pension Plan,” she said. The province of Quebec already has its own pension scheme.Trudeau and opposition Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre are against Alberta’s plan. More