SEC News Digest

ENFORCEMENT PROCEEDINGS

Commission Revokes Registration of Securities of Myrient, Inc. for Failure to Make Required Periodic Filings

On December 12, the Commission revoked the registration of each class of registered securities of Myrient Inc. (Myrient) for failure to make required periodic filings with the Commission.

Without admitting or denying the findings in the Order, except as to jurisdiction, which it admitted, Maritime consented to the entry of an Order Making Findings and Revoking Registration of Securities Pursuant to Section 12(j) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as to Myrient, Inc. finding that it had failed to comply with Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act) and Rules 13a-1 and 13a-13 thereunder and revoking the registration of each class of Myrient's securities pursuant to Section 12(j) of the Exchange Act. This order settled the charges brought against Myrient Inc. In the Matter of Graystone World Wide, Inc., et al., Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-13290.

Brokers and dealers should be alert to the fact that Exchange Act Section 12(j) provides, in pertinent part, as follows:

No member of a national securities exchange, broker, or dealer shall make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce to effect any transaction in, or to induce the purchase or sale of, any security the registration of which has been and is suspended or revoked . . . .

For further information Order Instituting Administrative Proceedings and Notice of Hearing Pursuant to Section 12(j) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, In the Matter of Graystone World Wide, Inc., et al., Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-13290, Exchange Act Release No. 58962 (Nov. 17, 2008). (Rel. 34-59089; File No. 3-13290)

In the Matter of Gary J. Gross

On December 12, the Commission issued an Order Instituting Public Administrative Proceedings Pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 203(f) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, Making Findings, and Imposing Remedial Sanctions (Order) against Gary J. Gross. The Order finds that from January 2003 through early January 2007, Gross lived in Boca Raton, Florida and was associated as a registered representative with Axiom Capital Management, Inc., a Delaware corporation registered with the Commission as a broker-dealer since June 22, 1990, and as an investment adviser from June 2004 through October 2006. The Order also finds the Commission sued Gross in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida in a civil action entitled Securities and Exchange Commission v. Gary J. Gross., Case No. 08-CIV-81039-Marra, alleging that from early 2004 through approximately September 2006, while he was a registered representative, Gross defrauded multiple customers by making material misrepresentations and omissions about the risks and suitability of securities he bought for them, churning customer accounts, and fabricating customer account values. The Complaint further alleged Gross convinced customers to open accounts at Axiom by promising greater income from and safety in their investments than their prior brokers, but that he then frequently disregarded the customers' conservative investment objectives in favor of unsuitable mutual and closed-end funds without disclosing the associated risks. The Order additionally finds that in the Commission's civil case, on November 25, 2008 the District Court entered a judgment by consent against Gross permanently enjoining him from violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act) and Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act), ordering him to pay disgorgement and a civil penalty pursuant to Section 20(d) of the Securities Act and Section 21(d) of the Exchange Act, and barring him from participating in an offering of penny stock as defined by Exchange Act Rule 3a51-1.

Based on the above, the Order barred Gross from association with any broker, dealer, or investment adviser. Gary Gross consented to the issuance of the Order without admitting or denying any of the findings except as to the entry of the final judgment. (Rel. 34-59090; IA-2820; File No. 3-13308)

SELF-REGULATORY ORGANIZATIONS

Accelerated Approval of Proposed Rule Change

The Commission has granted accelerated approval of a proposed rule change submitted by NASDAQ OMX Phlx (SR-Phlx-2008-79) pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 relating to reduction of option limit order exposure periods from three seconds to one second. Publication is expected in the Federal Register during the week of December 15. (Rel. 34-59081)

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http://www.sec.gov/news/digest/2008/dig121208.htm