The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the federal government and the main regulator of the US financial market, one of the four major US regulators. The SEC oversees the implementation of federal securities laws, proposes securities laws and regulates the securities industry, including the electronic securities market in the United States, and supervises market participants (exchanges, brokers, issuers, and investors). The SEC’s mission is to protect investors, keep markets open, structured and efficient, and ensure the formation of the capital market.

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was formed in 1934 during Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal presidency to restore investor confidence in the stock market during the Great Depression that began in 1929 and lasted until 1939. The SEC was created under Section 4 of the Securities Trading Act.

At the moment, the commission controls the markets of equities, bonds and financial derivatives. At the same time, the standards and approaches to its regulation that are applied by the US Securities and Exchange Commission are the benchmark for regulators in most countries.