SEC probes Wall Street bankers’ digital communications

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) opened a broad inquiry, Tuesday, into how Wall Street banks keep track of employees’ digital communications according to Reuters.

SEC enforcement staff contacted multiple banks to check whether they have been documenting employees’ work-related communications, such as text messages and emails, with a focus on their personal devices.

The industry sweep is a further sign that the SEC is ramping up enforcement under its Democratic leadership, and highlights the challenges Wall Street banks face keeping track of staff communications in the work-from-home pandemic era.

In August, JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) disclosed that it had been fielding regulatory inquiries concerning its “compliance with records preservation requirements.