Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
An independent federal government agency responsible for protecting investors, maintaining fair and orderly functioning of the securities markets, and facilitating capital formation; empowered under the Securities Exchange Act (SEA) of 1934 to register, regulate, and oversee brokerage firms, transfer agents, and clearing agencies as well as US securities self-regulatory organizations (SROs); generally, issues of securities offered in interstate commerce must be registered with the SEC before they can be sold to investors; financial services firms—such as broker-dealers, advisory firms and asset managers, as well as their professional representatives—must also register with the SEC to conduct business.