2026 investment management regulatory outlook
Message from the Deloitte Center for Regulatory Strategy
The regulatory environment for investment management shifted quickly and significantly in 2025. For 2026, we have identified three core themes: innovation, regulatory flexibility, and enforcement. Read our outlook to understand:
- What regulatory priorities to expect in 2026;
- How the current regulatory approach is shaping forces of innovation;
- Where regulators are focused from an examination and enforcement perspective; and
- How the regulatory environment is impacting the competitive landscape.
Looking ahead to what 2026 may hold for firms, technological and product innovation—driven by regulatory openness—will likely be the predominant factors shaping the investment management industry. The policy environment is creating tailwinds for retail investment in alternative products like digital assets and private market investments.
From a compliance perspective, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to allow firms more time to implement new investment management regulations, such as the Names Rule and amendments to Form PF. There is also a willingness on the part of the agency to provide “no action” relief and other forms of guidance to the industry—regulatory flexibility is a trend that we expect to continue in 2026.
While the SEC recalibrated its approach to enforcement in 2025—the new SEC Chair, Paul Atkins, has repositioned examinations and enforcement resources to focus on fraud and investor harm. Therefore, we caution firms against becoming overly complacent with their compliance programs while also anticipating a dip in the average size of enforcement fines.
As we observed in 2025, we expect that firms will be navigating delicate economic conditions in 2026 along with a more rapidly shifting competitive landscape accelerated by the policy environment. We hope our 2026 investment management regulatory outlook serves as a guide to the opportunities and potential pitfalls that await your firm this year.
Maria Gattuso
