WASHINGTON, DC – Benjamin Schiffrin, Director of Securities Policy, issued the following statement in connection with Better Markets’ new Fact Sheet, “The SEC is Working to Reduce Costs, Increase Transparency, and Prevent Identity Theft”:

“Today, all five members of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will testify before the House Financial Services Committee. The Commissioners’ joint written testimony highlights the rules that the SEC adopted in the last year. The rules that divide the members of the Commission seem to garner more attention publicly, but the Commissioners have adopted several rules unanimously that will provide significant benefits for investors. In the last year, all five Commissioners voted for rules to reduce costs for investors, increase transparency regarding the way investors’ orders are executed, and ensure that investors’ sensitive personal information is protected.

“Just last week, the SEC unanimously adopted a rule that will better allow investors to trade at prices that reflect true supply and demand, which will reduce their costs. Prior to that, the SEC unanimously adopted a rule to increase the availability of information about order executions, which will increase transparency and ultimately investors’ execution quality. And in May, the SEC unanimously adopted a rule that will protect investors from identity theft by requiring financial firms to notify investors of a data breach.

“In addition to these rules, this SEC has adopted many other important rules, albeit not all unanimously. This SEC has also gotten some policy decisions wrong—most notably in approving rule changes to allow the listing and trading of spot bitcoin and spot ether exchange-traded products. Still, the rules the SEC adopted unanimously this year show its ability to come together to adopt important investor protections, and they reveal that as the SEC turns 90 its mission remains as crucial today as when it was created in 1934.”

The Fact Sheet is available here.

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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies—including many in finance—to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.org.