While no one knows for sure what the future holds for investment management regulation, the tea leaves indicate that we may expect a slowdown on new regulations, some pullback on parts of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”), and an abundance of uncertainty. Here, we provide some observations for investment companies, their independent directors, investment advisers, broker-dealers and other service providers that want a peek at how we see the future unfolding.

To be sure, the future doesn’t look the same as it did in October. Prior to the election, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pursued Chair White’s regulatory and enforcement agenda for investment companies and investment advisers, and certain elements of the Senate sought an even more aggressive agenda by molding the SEC to meet its populist objectives.