Exam sweeps implied in SEC’s new priorities list (IGNITES)

Woven within the SEC’s 2026 examination priorities are that the regulator’s approach to conducting exams will be par for course. Firms thinking the SEC’s process for conducting exams will be any less intensive or that there will be fewer exams than in previous years are probably off the mark. Focus areas mostly follow those outlined in last year’s priorities, and the way the SEC will conduct its upcoming exams will likely follow suit. FrontLine’s Founder…

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What the 2025 Government Shutdown Taught Compliance Teams

With the federal government finally reopened after the longest shutdown on record (a historical 43 days), compliance leaders are taking stock of what was revealed about operational readiness. Few voices have been more instructive than Amy Lynch, Founder and President of FrontLine Compliance and a former SEC regulator, whose guidance throughout the shutdown offered a clear roadmap for how firms should prepare for future disruptions. Described below are “lessons learned” from the shutdown and recommendations…

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Point made from off-channel communications enforcement (Law360)

Recently SEC Chairman Paul Atkins decided to criticize the prior administration’s large focus on off-channel communications enforcement by claiming excessive resources were used to pursue cases. However, he neglected to mention the overarching impact of that enforcement in boosting recordkeeping compliance that appears to be firmly in place across the industry. With the lead comments in the Law360 story, FrontLine’s Founder and President Amy Lynch explains that the industry now gets it and the “point…

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Founder and President Amy Lynch speaks on expectations for SEC exams

FrontLine Compliance’s Amy Lynch brought her extensive compliance background and SEC expertise as a panel presenter at ALI CLE’s Life Insurance Company Products 2025 Conference on November 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Joining regulators, legal experts, and compliance leaders, Ms. Lynch spoke on a three-person panel, covering the latest regulatory focus areas for SEC-registered insurance products in the session, “New Developments in the SEC and FINRA Examinations Programs.” With the SEC previously shutdown, FrontLine’s Founder…

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With exams back on, Amy Lynch advises firms to stay off the SEC’s radar (Hedge Fund Alert)

The SEC is back to work and that means its regulatory agenda and examinations will be moving forward again. In exclusive comments featured in Hedge Fund Alert, Amy Lynch, FrontLine’s President and Founder, discusses the significance of the SEC shutdown as well as the expectations for regulation of the industry. Ms. Lynch previously recommended that firms keep their compliance on track during the shutdown and their exam material productions and regulatory filings up to…

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