SEC Probing Mutual Funds’ Muni-Debt Pricing

(Reuters) - U.S. securities regulators are probing whether some mutual funds have overstated the value of thinly traded risky municipal bonds at a time when investors were withdrawing money from...

Lawrence Weinman submits: It is a classic case of retail investors piling into an asset class, many late to the party in chasing performance, and then bailing in a panic on the inevitable sell-off. This time it was municipal bond funds.

In today’s zero interest rate environment, income investors are running out of options.  Yields on treasuries have been compressed to historic lows.  Bank CDs and deposit accounts aren’t generating enough income to cover account maintenance costs.  And equity positions that pay dividends are becoming more risky as the economy stumbles.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc's private bank is withdrawing its $187 million investment from SAC Capital Advisors LP, the latest of several client redemptions at the hedge fund firm, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

If you haven’t filed your 2012 federal income taxes yet, the clock is ticking. As of today, you have two weeks to get them in by the filing deadline of April 17, 2012.