SEI Investments launches ComplianceAdvantage; appoints Jim Volk CAO
SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC), the global provider of asset management and investment technology solutions for investment management organizations, including strategic operating partnerships, has launched ComplianceAdvantage, a program providing comprehensive compliance services, advice, and one-on-one support to its money manager clients.
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In a related development, SEI has appointed Jim Volk, Chief Accounting Officer (CAO) for the firm's Fund Accounting and Administration business, to serve as that unit's Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) and the key liaison for clients seeking support for their own compliance programs and CCOs.
Volk has been with SEI for more than eight years. Before being named CAO and CCO, he was Senior Operations Officer for SEI's Fund Accounting and Administration business. His previous experience includes nine years with PricewaterhouseCoopers and a two-year fellowship as Assistant Chief Accountant of the SEC's Division of Investment Management.
The ComplianceAdvantage program is designed to assist SEI clients as they move from the planning stages of a compliance program through final implementation of compliance efforts, and to help identify best practices in compliance policies, procedures, reporting, recordkeeping, and testing. While the industry's attention has focused mainly on new regulations aimed at mutual funds, SEI's program also covers provisions affecting investment management organizations generally including hedge fund and separate account managers.
"Our focus is on helping clients develop customized compliance policies and procedures, because the SEC has made it clear that generic, turnkey approaches will be inadequate," said Steve Meyer, head of SEI's Money Manager market unit. "Rather, the SEC is demanding that firms demonstrate a substantial commitment to creating a culture of compliance that encompasses all business activities."
Meyer noted that SEI is advising clients against outsourcing the CCO function and is not offering an outsourced CCO service as part of its program. The new SEC regulation requiring that each investment advisor appoint a CCO takes effect October 5, 2004, by which time firms must already be in compliance. "Not only are third-party CCOs bound to encounter conflicts of interest, we believe it will be extremely difficult for them to orchestrate the kind of substantial, firm-wide effort the SEC is demanding," said Meyer.
Components of the ComplianceAdvantage program include:
A continually updated "insider's" view of pending and upcoming regulatory actions provided through a matrix that tracks regulatory developments, an action calendar, and an ongoing series of Web seminars.Checklists and timelines of steps investment companies must be taking to meet critical compliance deadlines.Advice on evolving best practices concerning compliance program design and implementation as it affects all aspects of business operations.Ongoing support from Volk and his staff to assist with the identification of areas of compliance risk and the development of customized compliance policies and procedures.Operating solutions that facilitate compliance efforts, such as eBoardroom, Maxworks, and AdvisorAlert.Access to the industry's best thinking on regulatory issues, provided through model programs, guidelines, and policy positions put forward by leading experts and industry groups.A forum for dialogue on compliance and best practices issues among a network of SEI clients and other industry experts.
SEI will also review the services it provides to clients, including fund accounting, fund administration, transfer agency, shareholder servicing, and sales, marketing and distribution, to ensure that every aspect of those services is in full compliance with regulatory requirements.
SEI's ComplianceAdvantage program brings together an experienced staff and a variety of resources both within and outside the firm. Legal and regulatory developments are tracked, interpreted and anticipated by SEI staff working with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP, the firm's primary legal counsel. Insights into the business implications of these developments are contributed by the SEI Knowledge Partnership, which engages clients and industry experts in analyzing business issues. The SEI Knowledge Partnership is coordinated by Paul Schaeffer, Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation for SEI's Money Manager market unit. One-on-one work with clients is conducted by Volk and his staff.
"Complying with the letter and spirit of the new SEC regulations will be a formidable challenge for investment firms," Schaeffer said. "SEI is drawing on all of our resources, business knowledge, and relationships to help our clients meet that challenge."