That's Possible If .... Congress generously provides enough of the funding requested by the SEC for 2014 budget.

[ by Howard Haykin ]

The Securities and Exchange Commission submitted its fiscal year 2014 budget, which includes an additional 676 positions.  [C-I Note: From Mary Jo White's lips to God's ears!]   The SEC says it would need $1.7 billion for the requested 5,180 positions.  Last year, the Agency spent $1.4 billion for its 4,504.

How New Staff Would Be Utilized.    Here are 2 spots where the SEC would allocate money earmarked for staffing.

• Division of Risk, Strategy and Financial Innovation (RSFI):  45 new positions would go to the department, in part to support the analysis of HFT (high-frequency trading)  data and market structure issues by the Division of Trading and Markets.
  •  RSFI plans to hire economists with expertise for analyzing not just HFT data and market structure issues, but exec. compensation and corporate governance, as well as complex structured products.
  • That division also would to hire computer scientists with mathematical and statistical programming experience to support risk assessment and risk metrics, analytics, rulemaking, and economic analysis interpretive questions that relate to those filings and other matters relating to the companies making them.

• Division of Trading and Markets and the National Examination Program need 25 added positions to help monitor and evaluate risk management systems being used by clearing agencies.

General Levels of Resources.   The SEC will never stop griping about its resources - because the Agency will truly never have adequate resources to keep up with the private sectors' efforts to develop faster and more complex computer modules for trading. 

Besides having to chase in the race for technological superiority, the SEC continues to have a full plate of oversight responsibilities for a financial universe that would include:

• about 35,000 organizations - including 11,000 RIAs, 9,700 M/Fs and ETFs, 4,600 B/Ds with more than 160,000 branch offices.
• there are about about 9,500 reporting companies, for which the SEC must review disclosures and financial statements.

The SEC also has requested $56 million for added technology initiatives ---  including enhancements to the watchdog’s system for receiving tips, complaints, and referrals.

[C-I Note:  Perhaps it's time to raise the Section 31 fees - in much the way that cigarette taxes dwarf the post of the product.  Just some random thoughts.]

For further details, go to:   [Traders Magazine Online,4/11/13].