In “Targeting Foreign Fraud: SEC Forms Cross-Border Task Force” (Financier Worldwide, February 2026), Himamauli Das and Richard Hills offer perspective on the SEC’s sharpened focus on foreign-based issuers and intermediaries entering U.S. capital markets. Him notes that the creation of the SEC’s Cross-Border Task Force to Combat Fraud signals a significant evolution in the agency’s approach to cross‑border misconduct, stating that the task force “reflects a growing recognition of investor harm stemming from foreign-based issuers and intermediaries accessing U.S. markets.” He adds: “Its launch signals a need to address broader market-manipulation schemes linked to foreign companies and reinforces a simple principle: investor protection applies regardless of geography.”
Richard expands on the task force’s implicatins, observing that “the real shift is the scrutiny of gatekeepers, especially auditors,” and that when auditors fail to challenge weak disclosures or governance concerns, “they become enablers.” Richard notes that this enhanced scrutiny aims to strengthen the integrity of cross‑border listings and reinforce investor trust in a rapidly evolving global market environment.
Read the Financier Worldwide article.