TD Bank and Cowen and Co., which TD recently acquired, will pay a combined total of US$46.5 million in penalties to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges related to employees’ use of unapproved communication methods. RBC Capital Markets will pay US$45 million. (The Logic)

Talking point: The SEC charged a total of 26 firms with record-keeping failures Wednesday, levying combined penalties of more than US$390 million. The penalties are in addition to the US$1.2 billion in fines imposed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on 24 institutions since 2021. U.S. regulators have been cracking down on investment dealers’ use of personal devices and texting apps like WhatsApp, which can violate record-keeping requirements meant to facilitate investigations in the case of wrongdoing. In a statement to The Globe and Mail, an unnamed TD spokesperson said the bank “cooperated fully” with the investigation and is enhancing its policies. In a statement to Bloomberg, an unnamed RBC spokesperson said it is also updating its compliance protocols.