The Division of Examinations (the Division) (formerly known as the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations, or OCIE) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released its annual list of 2021 Examination Priorities on March 3, 2021.

Many of the Division’s 2021 examination priorities, including focus on conflicts of interest for brokers and investment advisers, among others, are perennial risk areas that the Division routinely prioritizes. While the SEC release discusses new issues in greater detail than continuing areas of interest, practitioners should continue to focus on these areas and monitor whether the SEC provides guidance throughout the year.

Continue reading the full GT Alert.

Tags: AML, digital assets, ESG, Financial Regulatory & Compliance, FINRA, Fintech, GT Insight, LIBOR, mutual funds, OCIE, SEC
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Photo of Richard M. Cutshall Richard M. Cutshall

Richard M. Cutshall is Co-Chair of the firm’s Financial, Regulatory and Compliance Practice, Co-Chair of the firm’s Private Funds Group, and Co-Chair of the firm’s Investment Management Group. Rich has experience representing clients in a variety of investment management, general securities, and corporate

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Richard M. Cutshall is Co-Chair of the firm’s Financial, Regulatory and Compliance Practice, Co-Chair of the firm’s Private Funds Group, and Co-Chair of the firm’s Investment Management Group. Rich has experience representing clients in a variety of investment management, general securities, and corporate matters, including the representation of mutual funds, ETFs, and other funds registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940; fund and ETF independent directors; unregistered investment funds; federally registered, state registered, and federally and state exempt investment advisers; broker-dealers; and an array of public and private companies.

Rich represents investment adviser clients at all stages of their life cycle, from concept and formation through registration, daily operation through wind-down and exiting the business, including representing investment adviser clients on both the buy-side and sell-side in M&A transactions. He also represents clients in all aspects of investment company practice, including organizing and forming new funds and ETFs, registering mutual funds and ETFs with the SEC, and the acquisition and merger of public funds.

In the course of representing investment advisers and public and private funds, Rich advises Greenberg Traurig’s clients on all aspects of securities regulatory compliance, particularly including new and existing SEC rules; SEC examination, regulatory, and investigative initiatives and sweeps; the SEC’s proposal, adoption, and implementation of new regulations, such as the recently rewritten investment adviser marketing rule; and finding compliance solutions related to the regulatory scheme applicable to investment advisers and investment funds, including implementing both novel and long-standing SEC regulatory guidance and interpretations. He also advises clients on the day-to-day aspects of corporate governance, board and adviser fiduciary responsibility, and SEC compliance, as well as assisting clients in all aspects of SEC and other regulatory examinations.

Rich has given presentations on and assists a variety of investment management clients with their compliance with anti-money laundering laws, and has performed annual independent third party audits of several clients’ anti-money laundering policies, programs and controls.

Rich also has experience representing clients in many industries in the sale or acquisition of businesses, formation of corporate entities, sophisticated contract negotiations, and in obtaining, renewing and renegotiating the terms of financing business operations. He routinely works with clients’ chief executive officers, chief financial officers, directors, and in-house general and assistant general counsels, including occasionally working from clients’ corporate headquarters upon request. Rich works with corporate and finance clients of all sizes, from startup family-run businesses and entrepreneurial endeavors to Fortune 500 clients. He also has experience representing clients across many industries, including health care, data management, retail product display and advertising design and manufacturing, industrial manufacturing, and real estate management and brokerage industries.

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Photo of Elaine C. Greenberg Elaine C. Greenberg

Elaine C. Greenberg has over 30 years of securities law experience, including a 25-year tenure at the SEC. Her practice focuses on SEC, FINRA, DOJ, State Attorneys General and other securities and financial services regulatory matters, examinations, investigations, enforcement actions, and litigation; white…

Elaine C. Greenberg has over 30 years of securities law experience, including a 25-year tenure at the SEC. Her practice focuses on SEC, FINRA, DOJ, State Attorneys General and other securities and financial services regulatory matters, examinations, investigations, enforcement actions, and litigation; white collar defense and corporate investigations; and public finance. She has represented, advised, and counseled: major financial institutions and other financial services firms and their associated persons, including banks, underwriters, broker-dealers, investment advisers, investment companies, and municipal advisors; issuers of securities, including public companies and their officers and directors, and state and local governmental entities and their officials; and other organizations and individuals.

Prior to entering private practice, Elaine served as a senior officer in the SEC’s Enforcement Division in dual roles. As the inaugural Chief of the Specialized Unit for Municipal Securities and Public Pensions, she built and led a nationwide unit to oversee the SEC’s enforcement efforts in the multitrillion-dollar municipal securities and public pensions marketplaces. As Associate Director of the Philadelphia Regional Office, she was responsible for overseeing the SEC’s enforcement program in the Mid-Atlantic region.

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Photo of Arthur Don Arthur Don

Arthur Don has more than 45 years of experience representing public and private investment companies, money managers and investment advisers, mutual funds and their independent directors, private investment funds (including private equity funds and real estate funds), and broker-dealers. His practice focuses on…

Arthur Don has more than 45 years of experience representing public and private investment companies, money managers and investment advisers, mutual funds and their independent directors, private investment funds (including private equity funds and real estate funds), and broker-dealers. His practice focuses on regulatory structuring and compliance matters, governance, and sophisticated securities matters and transactions.

Throughout his career, Arthur has represented some of the nation’s most well-known and successful investment managers. His decades-long experience in the investment management arena enables him to provide bespoke counseling and strategies.

In addition, Arthur has represented issuers and underwriters in numerous public offerings. He frequently advises on independent director fiduciary duties and compliance policy issues and the implementation of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) principles.

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Photo of Steven M. Malina Steven M. Malina

Steven M. Malina, a former Senior Attorney in the SEC’s enforcement branch, focuses his practice on a variety of litigation and regulatory matters with representations of financial services industry clients, hedge fund matters, and securities and general commercial litigation. He represents officers, directors,

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Steven M. Malina, a former Senior Attorney in the SEC’s enforcement branch, focuses his practice on a variety of litigation and regulatory matters with representations of financial services industry clients, hedge fund matters, and securities and general commercial litigation. He represents officers, directors, broker-dealers, investment advisors, commercial banks, investment banks, investment management firms, and public issuers in investigations and disciplinary proceedings initiated by the SEC, CFTC, FINRA, FDIC, NYSE, CBOE, CME, and state regulators. In addition, Steve represents clients in related investor class-action, derivative, and other litigation and arbitration. He has also conducted internal investigations on behalf of publicly traded companies and represented committees and executive officers in internal investigations. Steve has represented brokerage firms and their management in customer-initiated cases, and injunction and arbitration proceedings.

Prior to entering private practice, Steve served as First Vice President and Deputy Regional Counsel for a large financial corporation and was a Senior Attorney in the Branch of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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