USA: boards and the financial crisis - SEC enquiry

The Washington Post newspaper reports that the new chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mary Schapiro, will soon instigate a review of bank governance. This is likely to form part of a wider enquiry in which the SEC seeks to bring about greater board accountability with regard to director appointments and remuneration. Indeed, in a speech delivered earlier this month, chairman Schapiro stated:

... there needs to be a new era of responsibility on Wall Street and throughout our markets to ensure that wrongs don't occur in the first place. The sooner that Wall Street works to repair its own problems, the sooner investors will once again find the confidence to invest in what should be the finest markets in the world. There is much we can do to accelerate that process, including giving shareholders a greater say on who serves on corporate boards, and how company executives are paid".