The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its 2021 Examination Priorities on March 3. The Examinations group – elevated last December to Division status (formerly the Office of Compliance Investigations and Examinations (“OCIE”)) -- covered the list of perennial concerns. The 2021 priorities include some new subjects, however, reflecting the policy emphasis of the Biden administration.
“This year, the Division is enhancing its focus on climate and ESG-related risks by examining proxy voting policies and practices to ensure voting aligns ...
The SEC recently announced the creation of the Event and Emerging Risks Examination Team (“EERT”) in its Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”). OCIE is the unit charged with conducting compliance exams on registered investment companies, investment advisors, and broker-dealers -- although primary responsibility for examining broker-dealers lies with their self-regulatory organization, FINRA (itself subject to OCIE exams).
The SEC said the EERT unit “will proactively engage with financial firms about emerging threats and current market ...
The SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations ("OCIE") announced the agency's priorities for this year on January 11. Commission staff will focus on three broad areas: Retail Investors, Market-Wide Risks, and increased used of Data Analytics. Retail Investors Seniors top the list in this category, as the SEC continues its "ReTIRE" initiative announced last June. A nod to the aging boomer bubble, the ReTIRE program is a multi-year effort focusing on investment-adviser and broker-dealer issues in the retirement savings context, including: reasonable-basis ...
The SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations ("OCIE") released its 2015 Exam Priorities January 13. Director Andrew Bowden's annual list details OCIE's subject of focus for the coming year. The hot topics for 2015 include: For Retail securities sales: - The "retail-ization" of private funds, illiquid investments and structured or other alternative products that pose extra risks when complex products are sold to "mom and pop" investors; - Fees & "reverse churning" (a fixed asset-based fee on accounts with little or no activity) - when account or commission ...
The SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations ("OCIE") announced August 19 a two-year, three-phase examination initiative targeting newly-registered municipal advisors. SEC Press Rel. 2014-170 (Aug. 19, 2014). The MA Examination Initiative hopes to engage a significant portion of newly-registered MA's. In the first phase, Engagement, OCIE will engage in nationwide outreach to inform MA's of their obligations under Dodd-Frank, the SEC's new MA Rule and related implementing Rules by MSRB and others. The second phase, Examination, will review identified ...
On January 9, the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations ("OCIE") issued its annual "hot-topics" list of examination priorities for 2014. National Exam Program Priorities across OCIE's entire program include: 1. Fraud Detection & Prevention 2. Corporate Governance, Conflicts of Interest & Enterprise Risk Management 3. Technology 4. Dual Registrants (BD & RIA) 5. New Laws & Regulation
- Rule 506(c) Accredited Investors
- Crowd-funding
- Municipal Advisors
- New Registrants under Dodd-Frank