The Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday reported its fiscal 2026 enforcement results, including 348 actions and $1.095 billion in monetary relief, according to the agency. Two-thirds of standalone cases named at least one individual.
The SEC said it returned approximately $731 million to more than 250,000 harmed investors. The Commission brought 235 standalone cases and 113 follow-on administrative matters aimed at barring or suspending people based on criminal convictions, civil injunctions, or other qualifying orders. It also instituted 13 trading suspensions tied to suspected manipulation involving Asia-based issuers.
“Enforcement actions and financial remedies are important measures of activity, but they are not the only or most telling measures,” said SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins. David Woodcock, Director of the Division of Enforcement, said the Division reviewed its investigative docket, strengthened capabilities, and launched new initiatives.
The agency said disgorgement plus prejudgment interest totaled $752 million, civil penalties were $343 million, and a court in another, non‑SEC case counted $235 million of the disgorgement as already satisfied. The SEC said it continued to pursue cross‑border fraud, including charges against entities that allegedly filed false Forms ADV to appear as U.S. advisers and cases involving purported crypto trading platforms and investment clubs that allegedly defrauded retail investors.
The Division of Enforcement said it concentrated resources on harm to retail investors, citing charges in several Ponzi and offering fraud cases, a bitcoin mining scheme, and alleged fraud in the pre‑IPO secondary market. The SEC also brought settled and other actions to reinforce what it called investor‑protection guardrails, including the Custody Rule, Regulation Best Interest, cybersecurity safeguards, Suspicious Activity Report obligations, and blue sheet reporting.
Market‑integrity cases included alleged spoofing schemes and insider trading matters involving corporate employees and professionals. The SEC said it filed disclosure and financial‑reporting cases, including actions against Archer‑Daniels‑Midland Company and former executives, and against RYVYL, Inc., former Near Intelligence, Inc. executives and others, Battle Motors, Inc. and its CEO, and Lottery.com, Inc. and former executives. It also brought actions reinforcing accounting and auditing standards, including matters involving an audit partner tied to the former FTX platform, EisnerAmper LLP, and a New Jersey‑based CPA.
The SEC highlighted charges and orders involving investment advisers, including undisclosed fees and conflicts, valuation issues, and compliance failures. It cited charges against private fund managers and actions against advisory firms and individuals for misleading claims, fee practices, conflicts, and trade allocations.
The Commission said two‑thirds of standalone enforcement actions included at least one individual. It also wrote that most of the enforcement actions discussed in the release involved charges against individuals. The SEC reported examples of calibrated penalties and charging decisions that took remediation and cooperation into account. It said a settled order against CBIZ Inc. imposed no civil penalty. The Commission also said it imposed no civil penalties in an order against Ammo, Inc. n/k/a Outdoor Holding Company and in an order against Key Tronic Corporation and two senior executives. In a settled order against Nipun Kumar Jami, the Commission imposed a civil penalty equal to half of his illicit profits and acknowledged his voluntary self‑report and cooperation. The SEC imposed a $20 million civil penalty against UBS Financial Services Inc. for anti‑money laundering monitoring failures and a $100 million civil penalty against Western Asset Management Company, LLC related to a cherry‑picking scheme.
Participation in the whistleblower program remained strong, the SEC said. The Commission received approximately 26,000 tips and awarded more than $158 million to 65 individuals in fiscal 2026.
The Division reported organizational changes, including forming the Retail Fraud Working Group, creating a Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit, launching the Office of Super Intelligence and Analytics, and reorganizing the Trial Unit. It added leadership training, new performance‑management meetings, and targeted hiring in legal, accounting, technology, and data roles. The SEC said it strengthened coordination through memoranda of understanding with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Food and Drug Administration and continued close work with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and criminal authorities. It updated the Enforcement Manual for the first time since 2017 and said it will review it annually. The Commission also rescinded Rule 202.5(e), saying the change aligns it with most federal agencies and provides more flexibility in settlements.
