Securities

The SEC proposes amendments to rules governing mutual fund advertisements, which the commission says may give investors the false impression that funds’ occasional high returns typify their overall performance ( www.sec.gov/rules/proposed/33-8101.htm ). The changes would require the ads to disclose that a fund’s past results do not guarantee future returns, to direct investors’ attention to fund charges and expenses and to clearly disclose important information, such as the period during which the quoted performance occurred. Further, the amendments would reemphasize that fund ads are subject to federal securities laws’ antifraud provisions. Comments are due by July 31.

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) tells brokerage firms that if they choose to explain in their literature what the SIPC is and does, they must use one of two standard phrases to do so ( www.sipc.org/release08may02.html ). In this way, investors will have a better understanding of the extent to which the SIPC protects their account balances in the event of a brokerage failure.