SEC Exam Director to Step Down in April

Bowden is leaving the agency at the end of April to return to the private sector, the SEC said in a press release.

Bowden joined the SEC in 2011 as OCIE’s National Associate for the Investment Adviser/Investment Company examination program. He was named deputy director of OCIE in 2012 and became director of the unit in 2013.

During his tenure, Bowden worked with OCIE leadership and staff on a number of initiatives, including:

Significant enhancements in the examination unit’s ability to collect and analyze large datasets to identify exam candidates, and conducting more targeted, data-reliant, and impactful examinations.

Successful completion of the “Presence Exam” initiative, which provided education, examination, and guidance to newly registered investment advisers following the adoption of the Dodd-Frank Act.  The Presence Exam initiative is expanding to include the “Never-Before-Examined” initiatives for investment advisers and investment companies, and initial examinations of newly registered municipal advisers.

Exam initiatives in a variety of areas, including developments in the use of broker/dealer and investment adviser business models to serve retail investors; issues affecting older and retiring investors; the payment of fees by investment advisers and mutual funds to distribution entities; business continuity preparedness in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy; and risks to investors in fixed income and alternative mutual funds.

SEC Chair Mary Jo White called Bowden a thoughtful, creative and dedicated advocate for investors, the OCIE and the SEC. “Under his leadership, OCIE has effectively engaged with investors and the industry to promote compliance, worked to detect and prevent fraud, and advised the Commission on policy issues and developing risks,” she said.

Before joining the SEC, Bowden served in a variety of roles in the broker/dealer and asset management industries and in private legal practice. He was awarded a bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, by Loyola University in Maryland and a law degree, cum laude, by the University of Pennsylvania.