Firethorn Data Series · Examination Analytics
Firethorn — SEC Exam Priority Persistence Map (2013–2026)
14 years · 20 topic categories · Investment adviser focus Sources: SEC.gov annual examination priority letters (OCIE / Division of Examinations)
Living Dataset
Dataset Notes
This matrix covers SEC examination priority letters from FY2013 (first year published) through FY2026 (most recent). Topics are categorized for investment advisers specifically; broker-dealer-only priorities are excluded. "Present" means the topic appeared in that year's letter; "Strongly emphasized" means it was a named standalone section or described as a primary focus. Pre-2013 the SEC did not publish annual examination priority letters.
Key:
Strongly emphasized / named section
Present / included
First appearance
Present under Atkins
De-emphasized / partial
Absent
← White / Obama Era
← Clayton Era →
← Gensler →
Atkins →
Topic / Priority Area
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
Perennial Core — Present Every Year Since First Appearance
Conflicts of Interest 14/14
Fees & Expenses 14/14
Compliance Programs (Rule 206(4)-7) 14/14
Fiduciary Duty / Standards of Conduct 14/14
Custody Rule (206(4)-2) 14/14
Cybersecurity 12/14
Never / Not-Recently Examined Advisers 12/14
Persistent but Variable — Present Most Years, Emphasis Shifts
Marketing / Performance / Advertising 12/14
MNPI / Insider Trading 11/14
Private Fund Advisers (PE / Hedge / Credit) 11/14
Retail Investors / Retirement 10/14
Books & Records / Recordkeeping 10/14
Valuation 10/14
Emerging & Cyclical — Appeared More Recently or Intermittently
Off-Channel / Electronic Communications 5/14
Artificial Intelligence / Technology 4/14
ESG / Thematic Investing 4/14
AML / FinCEN / Sanctions 5/14
Reg S-P / Privacy / Data Security 6/14
Faded or Withdrawn — Appeared Earlier, Absent Under Atkins
Crypto / Digital Assets 5/14
Best Execution 8/14
Liquidity / Fund Liquidity Risk 4/14
The Immovable Five
Conflicts of interest, fees and expenses, compliance programs (Rule 206(4)-7), fiduciary duty, and custody have appeared in every single exam priority letter since 2013 — 14 consecutive years. These are not exam priorities; they are the permanent foundation of investment adviser compliance. No administration change has moved them and none will. If your compliance program has gaps in any of these five areas, the question is not whether an examiner will find it, but when.
Cybersecurity: The Fastest-Rising Perennial
Cybersecurity first appeared in 2015 and has been present every year since — 12 consecutive years. It has intensified continuously, from a single bullet point in 2015 to a named primary section with sub-items covering incident response, third-party vendor oversight, and now Reg S-P compliance. It is the clearest example of a topic that entered as "emerging" and became permanent within two years. AML and Reg S-P appear to be following the same trajectory.
ESG and Off-Channel: The Atkins Withdrawals
ESG/thematic investing (first appeared 2022, strongly emphasized 2023–2024) and standalone off-channel communications (first emphasized 2022, strong in 2023–2024) both disappeared from the 2026 priorities under Atkins. These are the clearest examples of administration-variable priorities — topics driven by specific leadership's policy agenda rather than enduring investor protection concerns. Neither the underlying obligation nor the enforcement risk has gone away, but the exam focus has visibly shifted.
AI: Emerging to Emphasized in Two Years
AI first appeared as an exam priority in 2023 and became a strongly emphasized standalone topic in 2024 and 2025. It continued into the 2026 priorities under Atkins — making it one of the few "Gensler-era" topics to survive the administration change. This reflects the fact that AI-related compliance failures (AI washing, inadequate AI governance policies) cut across both administrations' stated focus on genuine investor harm.
Crypto: The Administration Reversal
Crypto / digital assets appeared as an exam priority from 2017 through 2022, then disappeared entirely from 2023 onward — replaced by enforcement-through-examination under Gensler (which the Atkins administration has explicitly abandoned). This is the sharpest administration-driven reversal in the 14-year dataset. Unlike off-channel, where the underlying obligation remains unchanged, the crypto regulatory framework itself is actively being rewritten under Atkins' Project Crypto initiative.
The Predictive Signal
Based on the pattern: when a topic appears for the first time in the exam priorities letter, it typically takes 12–24 months to generate its first enforcement action. When it appears as a "strongly emphasized" section, enforcement activity is usually already underway or imminent. The December 2025 Risk Alert on Marketing Rule testimonials/endorsements — combined with its presence as a de-emphasized item in the 2026 priorities — is consistent with an active enforcement sweep (the M&A endorsement sweep) being the enforcement follow-through.
Methodology. Topic categorizations are based on primary review of SEC OCIE / Division of Examinations annual examination priority letters for FY2013 through FY2026. The SEC began publishing annual examination priorities in 2013 — no equivalent letter exists for prior years. "Strongly emphasized" (dark blue / dark gold) reflects topics that appeared as named standalone sections or were described as a primary focus area. "Present" (medium blue) reflects topics that appeared substantively but not as a primary standalone section. "De-emphasized" (light blue) reflects topics that appeared briefly or in passing, with reduced emphasis relative to prior years. "Absent" reflects topics not meaningfully present. Investment adviser-specific topics only — broker-dealer-only priorities are excluded. This matrix represents the preparer's interpretation of each year's letter; reasonable people may classify borderline cases differently. This is an analytical data compilation. No legal conclusions should be drawn from this data without consulting qualified counsel.
Firethorn Regulatory Intelligence · firethorn.ai · hello@firethorn.ai Compiled by AI · Sources: SEC.gov annual exam priority letters · June 2026