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The SEC’s new arithmetic – fewer cases, sharper consequences

SEC Chair Paul Atkins
SEC Chair Paul Atkins. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Enforcement at the SEC has slowed in volume, but for those who fall within its narrower focus, the consequences may be more severe than before.

The US SEC has never been short on numbers. Each year brings a familiar ritual of totals and comparisons that promise to capture the state of enforcement at a single glance.

Yet the fiscal year 2025 results resist that kind of easy reading. At first sight, the figures suggest retreat. Fewer