SEC-PR-2412-196

The report includes:

• The office’s findings from a program of quarterly, longitudinal surveys of investors launched in fiscal year 2024. The Thoughtful Households Relating InVesting Experiences (THRIVE) Panel is a nationally representative survey panel that can facilitate frequent survey research to provide timely data on investment-related topics and support investor testing projects to help inform policymaking or long-run research priorities.
• The office’s continued focus on investment fraud. Reported fraud incidents continued to grow in 2024, as reported by numerous investors, regulators, and law enforcement agencies.
• An update on the SEC’s creation of the Interagency Securities Council, a joint task force where federal, state, and local regulatory and law enforcement professionals meet to discuss the latest in financial frauds, scams, trends, and mitigation strategies, and receive briefings on emerging and complex topics to better protect investors.
• From the Office of the Ombuds, part of the Office of the Investor Advocate, a report which describes in detail what has emerged as a prevalent pattern of investment fraud, as learned from the victims who contact the Ombuds for assistance. The Office of the Investor Advocate and the Office of the Ombuds continue to seek insights and recommendations from a variety of stakeholders on this proliferation of fraud and encourage the greatest possible coordination among regulators and law enforcement to curb and cure the impacts on individual victims, but also on the victims’ families and communities who all pay a price for fraud.