The complexity of our markets makes it hard to know what’s happening with our money and transactions – and the best solution is more transparency and clear disclosures. Unfortunately, existing disclosures are (at best) outdated or (at worst) intentionally opaque or misleading. Simplifying markets will help to address this, but disclosure requirements must be modernized and then continually updated. Point-in-time disclosure standards are inadequate, and must be continuously updated over time using the SEC’s authority of retrospective review.

There are holes in our regulatory disclosure framework that must be addressed, including Single Dealer Platforms (SDPs) that transact significant market share, securities lending, 13Fs, and the ability for brokers to expunge their records.

The opacity and complexity of markets has further removed individual investors from their investments, and from directly interacting with issuers. We aim to reconnect investors and companies, and modernize our framework for purchasing and holding securities.