The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to launch exams targeting hedge funds, Peter Driscoll, head of the new Office of Risk and Strategy, said Friday.
Driscoll said at the Investment Adviser Association's annual compliance conference in Washington that private equity funds and private fund advisors would "continue to be a big focus" for the exam unit as well this year, adding that the focus on hedge funds will zero in on such areas as portfolio management trading and back-office operations.
The SEC conducted "presence exams" of private fund advisors through FY 2014. Since then, OCIE has continued to examine private fund advisors, though not through the presence exam initiative. Private fund advisor exams, however, were also listed in the SEC's exam priorities list for 2016.
Driscoll declined to elaborate to ThinkAdvisor after his remarks on the hedge fund exam initiative, stating only that the agency would be announcing "something soon."
The SEC announced Tuesday that it created an Office of Risk and Strategy within OCIE and appointed Driscoll to head the new office under the title of chief risk and strategy officer.
The SEC announced the same day that Robert Fisher will replace Driscoll as OCIE's managing executive. In his new role, Driscoll will manage the new office as well as the investment advisor/investment company exam staff based in Washington.
