Wall Street Faces SEC Heat Over WhatsApp Use

<p>The US Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) is ramping up its investigation into Wall
Street's use of private messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal. The agency has
recently collected thousands of staff messages from more than a dozen major
investment companies, marking a significant escalation in its two-year
crackdown on potential record-keeping violations.</p><p>SEC Investigates Wall
Street’s Private Chats</p><p>The SEC's
probe initially targeted broker-dealers, resulting in over <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/institutional-forex/danske-bank-to-pay-2-billion-fine-for-defrauding-us-banks/" target="_blank" rel="follow">$2 billion in fines</a>.
However, the focus has now shifted to investment advisers. The agency has been
scrutinizing messages on personal devices from the first half of 2021,
targeting a selection of employees, including senior executives. Firms under
the microscope include Carlyle Group, Apollo Global Management, KKR &amp; Co,
TPG, and Blackstone.</p><p>The <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/sec/" target="_blank" rel="follow">SEC's</a>
intensified scrutiny exposes companies and their executives to greater risks.
"The more information you give the SEC, the more you fuel the beast,"
commented an anonymous source familiar with the matter quoted by Reuters.
Unlike previous broker-dealer investigations, where the SEC reviewed only a
sample of messages, the agency is now directly collecting messages from
employees' personal devices.</p><blockquote><p lang="en" dir="ltr">