EDGAR Filer Access and Account Management

As previously announced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (EventID 23010), the Commission has now published in the Federal Register (FR) its consultation on proposed changes to the Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval (EDGAR) system, which is used by individuals and entities to electronically submit filings required by various federal securities laws, including the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, and the Investment Company Act of 1940. The purpose of the proposed changes, referred to as EDGAR Next, is to modernize and improve the way filers access and manage their EDGAR accounts, thereby also enhancing access security.
As we have already discussed the proposed amendments in quite some detail in above noted Event, we refrain from repeating all details at this point. However, in brief, the SEC proposes to
– introduce a dashboard for EDGAR account management;
– require filers to appoint account administrators on their behalf;
– require annual confirmation of particulars and appointments of noted administrators;
– introduce multi-factor authentication for all EDGAR users; and
– bring about new APIs that would facilitate machine-to-machine submissions.
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As previously mentioned, the SEC also announces that it will open a beta software environment for filer testing and feedback, reflecting the proposed rule and form amendments, and technical changes.