The SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations is getting a name change to Division of Examinations to reflect the division's role "in promoting a strong culture of compliance within the financial services industry," agency commissioners said Thursday.
The office created 25 years ago is now the SEC's second largest division, after enforcement. Along with keeping up the growth in investment advisers and national securities exchange participants, the division has assumed responsibilities for many new entities, including private fund advisers; municipal advisers; entities under Regulation Systems Compliance, or Regulation SCI; and soon-to-be registered securities-based swap dealers, the SEC said.
On Friday, the agency announced that several divisions, including examinations, are part of a new security-based swaps joint venture overseeing compliance with the new rules.
Those activities help promote proactive compliance through market outreach and risk alerts, the commissioners said in a joint statement. "The division's new name reflects the important role that its expert staff play in support of the SEC's mission to protect investors, maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and facilitate capital formation."
