SEC's Atkins is fast-tracking Trump's proposal to end quarterly reporting

SEC Chair Paul Atkins is fast-tracking President Donald Trump's proposal to allow semi-annual corporate reporting instead of the current quarterly requirement, backing a "minimum effective dose of regulation" to protect investors.

"It is time for the SEC to remove its thumb from the scales and allow the market to dictate the optimal reporting frequency based on factors such as the company's industry, size and investor expectations," he wrote in an op-ed in the _Financial Times_.

"Giving companies the option to report semi-annually is not a retreat from transparency. Instead, it puts a renewed focus on market-driven disclosure practices that favor the interests of companies and their investors over prescriptive regulatory mandates," he added.

Atkins also took a swipe at Europe's recent corporate sustainability directives, saying these regulations require the disclosure of matters that may be socially significant but not financially material.

"… disclosure should not be driven by political fads or distorted objectives," he wrote, adding that Europe's sustainability mandates "risk imposing costs that fall on American investors and customers, while doing little to enhance the information that steers capital decisions."

Atkins said [https://www.ft.com/content/0f6be08a-fd24-4558-b373-6ada31e18900] Europe should focus on reducing "unnecessary reporting burdens" if it wants to attract more listings and investment. "For our part, I am committed to ensuring that in the U.S., the SEC prioritizes the wellbeing of investors above the wishes of ideologues."

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