ABOLISHSEC

Securities and Exchange Commission

Ignored Madoff for years. Still writes the rules for your startup.

Official story

What they claim to do

Protects investors and maintains fair, orderly and efficient markets.

Ground truth

What they actually do

Received credible warnings about Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme for years before it collapsed in 2008, according to the SEC’s own inspector general. Meanwhile, registration and disclosure rules add costs that fall hardest on small companies trying to raise capital.

The libertarian case

Its regulatory moat mostly protects incumbent Wall Street firms, because only large institutions can afford the compliance. Fraud is already illegal. Voluntary certification, private auditing and reputation markets protect investors better than an agency that missed the biggest fraud of its era.

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