Pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act, the Investor Advocate is required to file two reports annually with the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives, which include the mid-year Report on Objectives for the forthcoming fiscal year and end of year Report on Activities during the preceding fiscal year.
The Report for fiscal year 2026 published just recently identifies a number of objectives, including the following: enhancing the accessibility of disclosures for investors; disclosure and investor testing; China-based variable interest entities; private market investments in retirement accounts; evaluating the potential impact of SRO rule proposals on investors; and crypto task force requests for information.
With respect to enhancing the accessibility of disclosures for retail investors, the Investor Advocate will consider how to make disclosures more user-friendly, including considering ways to streamline disclosures, reduce or eliminate repetitive disclosures, and otherwise make disclosures more effective. The Investor Advocate will continue investor research and testing. The Investor Advocate will focus on risks posed by certain VIEs, which may arise over concerns over the reliability of their financial reporting, the enforceability of their contractual arrangements, limitations on shareholder rights, etc. The Investor Advocate will consider the risks related to inclusion of alternative investments, such as private equity and private credit, in retirement savings plans and the implications for retail investors. In this regard, the Investor Advocate will consider risks arising from, among other things, reduced, incomplete or unreliable disclosure, limited liquidity and greater risk of fraud and/or investment loss associated with private securities. Access the Report here, https://www.sec.gov/files/fy26-oiad-sar-objectives-report.pdf to read more.
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