The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Friday appointed its first ombudsman, who will be charged with resolving issues between retail investors and regulators.
The SEC said Tracey McNeil will become the agency’s first ombudsman on Sept. 22. She is currently a senior counsel in the SEC’s Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI). Before that, she spent three years in the SEC’s corporate finance division, and time in private law practice.
Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC was required to create an ombudsman to serve as a liaison in resolving problems that retail investors have with the either the SEC or industry self-regulatory organizations. The ombudsman will also establish safeguards to maintain the confidentiality of communications with investors.
“Investors will soon discover that Tracey McNeil is a person who cares deeply about their concerns,” said Rick Fleming, the first head of the SEC’s Office of the Investor Advocate. “In addition, her strong securities law background, solid legal and analytical skills, sound judgment, and well-established relationships with other offices and stakeholders will serve us well as we move forward in fulfilling our statutory mandate.”