On March 29, the Division of Examinations1 (the Division) within the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) released its annual list of examination priorities for investment advisers regulated by the SEC under the U.S. Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Advisers Act) and investment companies under the U.S. Investment Company Act of 1940 (the Company Act). Private funds In light of the SEC’s February 2022 proposal of comprehensive new rules for private funds, and a January 2022 risk alert on private fund practices, it should be no surprise that the 2022 priorities list focuses heavily on private funds. The Division highlighted that more than 5,000 registered investment advisers (RIAs), totaling 35% of all RIAs, manage around US$18 trillion in private fund assets, marking a 70% increase in assets managed by private funds.