This month, the SEC and other financial regulators proposed rules, required by Dodd-Frank, that would prohibit incentive compensation arrangements that “could encourage inappropriate risk-taking by providing excessive compensation or that could lead to a material financial loss.” According to the press release, “[t]here is evidence that flawed incentive-based compensation packages in the financial industry were one of the contributing factors in the financial crisis that began in 2007.”
The rules would apply to financial institutions, including investment adviser and broker-dealers, with consolidated assets of $1 billion or more. The specific requirements would be tiered into three categories based on an institution’s assets. In general, for the top two categories, the prohibitions would apply to senior executive officers and “significant risk takers.” Comments on the proposed rules are due by July 22, 2016.