Robert E. Plaze is a partner and a member of the Investment Management team. He advises investment advisers and investment companies on an array of matters, with a particular focus on regulatory and compliance matters arising under the federal securities laws.
Bob previously served as Deputy Director of the Division of Investment Management of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. During his nearly 30 years of service with the Commission, he was responsible for policy development and management of many of the key regulatory initiatives during that period affecting investment companies and investment advisers under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, including rules governing fund and adviser compliance programs, fund corporate governance, personal trading, custody and brokerage practices, prohibitions on “pay to play” practices, and protection of investor privacy. Most recently, Bob was responsible for rulemaking to implement provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act affecting investment advisers, including rules requiring advisers to hedge funds and other private funds to register with the Commission, rules implementing new exemptions from registration and rules requiring reporting by certain exempt investment advisers.
Bob is one of the nation’s leading experts in the regulation of money market funds. While a Commission official, he was responsible for the Commission’s money market regulatory program, including amendments to rule 2a-7 adopted in 1991, 1996 and 2010. Bob represented the Commission on several interagency committees of the Financial Stability Oversight Board dealing with systemic risk issues and the regulation of money market funds.
Bob joined the Commission in 1983 as an attorney in the Division of Investment Management. During his tenure with the Commission, he held several positions of responsibility in the Division, including Special Counsel, Assistant Director, Associate Director for Regulatory Policy and Deputy Director.
