SEC 2026 Exam Priorities: Is Your RIA Ready?

Facing a regulatory exam doesn’t have to be a mystery — preparation is everything. In our latest post, a former regulator shares practical insights on what examiners are really looking for and how compliance teams can walk into exams with confidence. From understanding risk priorities to reviewing past findings and anticipating what’s next — this guide helps you think like the examiner and prepares you to respond with clarity and credibility. Read the blog: https://bit.ly/4qx3YA3

The SEC’s Division of Examinations has released its 2026 Priorities, offering a clear look at where regulatory attention is headed next year. For firms looking to stay proactive and aligned with evolving expectations, these insights are essential. Explore the full breakdown in EisnerAmper’s article: https://okt.to/qMUSOY #SEC #financialservices #SECCompliance

As the regulator places greater scrutiny on private markets, it has updated its regulatory guidance on managing conflicts of interest for financial services businesses. https://lnkd.in/ghvRAT6E

The SEC just dropped its 2026 exam priorities. They indicate a move away from regulation through enforcement, favoring a more cooperative approach between the industry and regulators. This collaboration aims to enhance investor protection while promoting effective capital formation.

The SEC just dropped its 2026 exam priorities. They indicate a move away from regulation through enforcement, favoring a more cooperative approach between the industry and regulators. This collaboration aims to enhance investor protection while promoting effective capital formation.

The SEC’s Division of Examinations has released its 2026 Priorities, offering a clear look at where regulatory attention is headed next year. For firms looking to stay proactive and aligned with evolving expectations, these insights are essential. Explore the full breakdown in EisnerAmper’s article: https://okt.to/XM0CAW #SEC #compliance #financialservices #SECCompliance

The SEC’s Division of Examinations has released its 2026 Priorities, offering a clear look at where regulatory attention is headed next year. For firms looking to stay proactive and aligned with evolving expectations, these insights are essential. Explore the full breakdown in this EisnerAmper EisnerAmper India article: https://okt.to/4OjfGK #SEC #compliance #financialservices #SECCompliance

The SEC’s Division of Examinations has released its 2026 Priorities, offering a clear look at where regulatory attention is headed next year. For firms looking to stay proactive and aligned with evolving expectations, these insights are essential. Explore the full breakdown in EisnerAmper’s article: https://okt.to/5N4bsU #SEC #compliance #financialservices #SECCompliance

Thank you to everyone who joined this month’s NSCP Investment Adviser Forum! These conversations are where compliance leaders can translate regulatory signals into real program decisions, and I’m grateful to our Co-Chairs Andrew Dean and Christopher Mulligan for guiding such a timely, practical discussion. 🔎 Key themes from the discussion:  ✔️ Reg S-P / Reg SID readiness is the near-term exam pressure point. We discussed how exams will go deep on policies, internal controls, vendor oversight, red-flag processes, training, and incident-response preparedness as compliance dates arrive. ✔️ Private markets and valuation governance remain front-of-mind. The Forum highlighted ongoing SEC attention on private credit/illiquid and valuation practices — a reminder to keep pressure-testing conflicts, disclosures, and oversight frameworks. ✔️ Retail investor protection continues to anchor the SEC’s posture. In reviewing recent SEC remarks, we talked about a measured approach, focused on investor protection and market stability, not a wholesale swing away from oversight. ✔️ Practical exam-prep takeaway: don’t just read priorities — map what’s relevant to your firm, “kick the tires,” and be ready to show exam staff how you operationalized the guidance. Our next IA Forum is Thursday, January 8, 2026! I hope you’ll join us as we keep tracking enforcement, exams, and what they mean in practice for adviser compliance programs. #InvestmentAdvisers #ComplianceLeadership

Interesting to read Melissa Loner, QAS’s synopsis especially ‘don’t just read priorities - map what’s relevant to your firm, “kick the tires,” and be ready to show exam staff how you operationalized the guidance’. Recent conversations with CCOs are exposing a significant compliance blind spot considering what is implicit in the explicit emphasis on the duty of care for protecting older investors and those saving for retirement, and the requirement to demonstrate the effectiveness of a firm’s compliance program. A risk based acid test is how this question is answered, “If SEC examiners asked today how your firm supervises and documents advisor duty of care for older investors whose time horizon, investment objectives and personal backgrounds may extend decades beyond traditional retirement assumptions — could you point to a defined training control and written supervisory standard that demonstrates compliance program effectiveness?” The consistent answers so far have been resounding ‘No’s.