By Chris Prentice
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday signaled it would take an increasingly aggressive stance with corporate executives and gatekeepers, including with an increased focus on seeking guilty admissions and bars from industry when warranted.
In remarks highlighting the importance of rebuilding investors’ trust in Corporate America and markets, SEC enforcement director Gurbir Grewal said the agency will be seeking these remedies, marking a turn in strategy for the top U.S. markets regulator.
“We will, in appropriate circumstances, be requiring admissions in places where accountability and acceptance of responsibility, are in the public interest,” Grewal said at an industry conference.
SEC officials under the Trump administration said such a policy would not be a priority. Historically, many of the agency’s resolutions with public companies, financial firms and executives are finalized without the parties admitting or denying the agency’s charges.
(Reporting by Chris Prentice; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
