WASHINGTON, July 16 (Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday proposed a new rule that would allow electronic delivery of disclosures that it said was an effort to make information more accessible for investors, brokerages and investment fund advisers and others.
The agency said the change reflected the current state of technology used on Wall Street, part of a pro-innovation agenda.
“In an age of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology, a default to paper delivery should be a relic, not a standard,” SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said in a statement.
Currently companies provide investor disclosures in paper format unless recipients ask for electronic delivery. Under the proposal, companies would instead have the ability to offer e-delivery without first getting consent for this, according to the announcement, potentially saving costs as well.
The proposal is now subject to a two-month notice-and-comment period before any decision on finalizing the rule.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Douglas Gillison, editing by David Ljunggren and Deepa Babington)
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