SEC Crackdown on Audit Misconduct Slowed in Biden’s Last Year

The SEC took far fewer, but higher value, enforcement actions against individuals and firms involved in financial reporting during the last year of the Biden administration than it had for the two years prior.

The agency took 45 actions related to potential accounting and auditing misconduct in fiscal year 2024 that ended Sept. 30, representing a 46% decline from the 83 actions the previous year, according to a Cornerstone Research report released Wednesday. Simultaneously, the Wall Street regulator’s monetary penalties in fiscal year 2024 reached their highest level since 2021, totaling more than $770 million.

The downturn in enforcement actions ...