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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Thursday that it is dropping its civil fraud lawsuit against SolarWinds and its Chief Information Security Officer, Tim Brown. The case involved a supply-chain attack launched by Russian hackers in 2020 through the Orion software, and the SEC had accused the company of failing to disclose known security risks. The dismissal was made with prejudice, but the SEC stated that it does not affect other cases. SolarWinds welcomed the decision, stating that its team acted appropriately.
A report released this week by NYU Pollack Center for Law & Business and Cornerstone Research shows that in fiscal year 2025 (ending September 30), the number of enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against public companies decreased by 30% year-over-year, totaling 56 cases. Of these, 93% of enforcement actions occurred during Gary Gensler's tenure as SEC Chair, while only 4 cases emerged after Paul Atkins took office. The report noted that total monetary settlements decreased by 45% year-over-year to $808 million, the lowest level in over a decade.
Data released by the US Department of Labor on Thursday showed that nonfarm payrolls increased by 119,000 in September, higher than market expectations, but the unemployment rate climbed to 4.4%, the highest level in nearly four years. Meanwhile, employment growth data for July and August were revised down by a combined 33,000. Samuel Tombs, chief US economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, believes that the September employment data may overstate labor demand and does not constitute a reason against the Fed cutting interest rates. Fed officials are clearly divided on the policy path for December, and interest rate futures markets show a 60.2% probability of holding rates steady.
Xerox Holdings said Wednesday that Chuck Butler, its chief business services officer, will become CFO, succeeding Mirlanda Gecaj, who is leaving after less than a year in the role. The transition is effective Dec. 3 and occurs amid a company reorganization and recent job cuts tied to the Lexmark acquisition.
The Bank of America 2025 Business Owner Report shows that inflation has exceeded the Federal Reserve's 2% target for four consecutive years, becoming the top concern for small businesses. 70% of respondents view inflation as the primary risk, 64% have raised prices, and 77% report an average cost increase of 18%. Despite an uncertain economic outlook, 74% of businesses remain positive, 59% plan to expand, and 43% intend to increase hiring.
The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) voted unanimously on Wednesday to add the accounting for transfers of crypto assets, including wrapped tokens and receipt tokens, to its high-priority technical agenda. The project may expand the scope of the 2023 guidance, Crypto Assets (Subtopic 350-60), in response to stakeholder feedback and recommendations from the President's Working Group on Digital Asset Markets.
According to the latest survey released by Gartner on Tuesday, the adoption rate of artificial intelligence among corporate finance teams in 2025 is roughly the same as in 2024, although optimism about the technology has risen. Among 183 surveyed CFOs and senior finance executives, 59% said they use AI within their departments, slightly up from 58% last year. Of those adopters, 67% are more optimistic about AI than they were last year. The research indicates that data literacy, data quality, and skill shortages remain major barriers, while use cases such as knowledge management and accounts payable automation are the most common.
Coursera announced on Monday the appointment of former Alphabet executive Michael Foley as interim CFO and Treasurer, effective immediately. This follows former CFO Ken Hahn's transition to an advisory role on October 29 for a 12-month term. Foley's appointment comes at a critical time as the company accelerates its AI initiatives, with a monthly salary of $166,667 and the opportunity to earn a cash bonus of up to $200,000.
CFOs face pressure to leverage AI for efficiency, but excessive transformation leads to team fatigue and lower adoption rates. The PAUSE framework provides a human-centric AI integration strategy, emphasizing people-first planning, enhancement over replacement, upskilling, sustainable pacing, and evaluating evolution to protect employee well-being and achieve long-term ROI.
Kevin Carmody, senior partner at McKinsey, said that CFOs are placing more emphasis on downside risk protection when formulating 2026 budgets, including prudent investment, setting realistic goals, and addressing geopolitical and economic uncertainties.