You are way behind the curve. The SEC is actually helping to kill off the small boutique brokerage firms in this nation with over-regulation. This has been going on for 6 years at this pooint and is mostly being done by FINRA, the brokerage industry’s “self-regulatory organization.” It kicked into high gear after the merger of the NYSE regulators with the NASD in 2007. If you don’t believe me take at look at FINRA’s total membership count in July 2007 through today and further look at the number of new firms “admitted to membership” in that time period. The numbers are dismal.
Your government wants us all working for a huge corporation, a government agency, or drawing welfare. We are easier to keep quiet in our pens under that vision.
The SEC is one of the most useless agencies in D.C. The incompetence, backwardness, and indifference are at times staggering.