US SEC to see exodus as hundreds take Trump's buyout offers, sources say [View all]

Source: Reuters

March 21, 2025 5:19 PM EDT Updated 12 hours ago


WASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) - Wall Street's top regulator is facing a staff exodus across key departments as hundreds have agreed to take resignation offers amid President Donald Trump and Elon Musk's efforts to remake the U.S. government, five people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Departures from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including by senior staff and enforcement lawyers, could significantly hamper the watchdog's efforts to police markets and protect investors, the sources said. The exits, first reported by Reuters, stem from Trump and Musk's efforts to slash the federal workforce.

Since the White House began offering voluntary departures across the civil service, more than 600 people have agreed to leave the SEC, said two sources with direct knowledge and two people briefed on the matter. Friday is the deadline for the SEC's latest resignation incentive programs. Trump gave agencies until March 13 to draw up plans for a second wave of mass layoffs as part of his rapid-fire effort to reshape and downsize the federal government, which he has called bloated and inefficient.

The estimates put the voluntary departures at more than 12% of the SEC's staff, according to overall staff numbers included in the agency's latest budget report to Congress. An SEC spokesperson declined to comment. Reuters could not determine exactly when those people would leave the agency.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-sec-see-exodus-hundreds-take-trumps-buyout-offers-sources-say-2025-03-21/