The Securities and Exchange Commission took the second most actions in its history during this past fiscal year, including major charges against short sellers.
The SECs role in policing the markets and protecting investors has never been more critical, said Linda Chatman Thomsen, Director of the SECs Division of Enforcement. The dedicated enforcement staff has been working around the clock to investigate and punish wrongdoing. The staffs commitment is unwavering year-in and year-out. We look forward to continuing our vital mission of investor protection in the coming year.
The SEC brought 671 enforcement actions during the just-completed fiscal year, with the number of insider trading and market manipulation cases up more than 25 percent and 45 percent respectively over the previous year. In addition, the SEC has more than 50 ongoing investigations relating to the subprime market.
The Division of Enforcement also reached preliminary settlements in principle with six of the largest firms in the auction rate securities market. Although not included in these FY 2008 enforcement statistics, these settlements, which are subject to final approval by the Commission, would be the largest in the history of the SEC and would return more than $50 billion to investors.