On May 1, 2014, the Regulatory Compliance Association held its Enforcement, Compliance and Operations (ECO) 2014 Symposium in New York City.  Top SEC officials and other panelists at the ECO 2014 Symposium offered detailed, current and candid insight on regulatory transparency, custody, conflicts raised by serving simultaneously as a broker and investment adviser, what the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets does, interaction between the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations and its Enforcement Division, broker registration of in-house marketing departments, alternative mutual funds, the JOBS Act, cybersecurity, Regulation M, examinations, expert networks and political intelligence.  This is the first article in a two-part series summarizing the key takeaways from the ECO 2014 Symposium.  See also “RCA Symposium Offers Perspectives from Regulators and Industry Experts on 2014 Examination and Enforcement Priorities, Fund Distribution Challenges, Conducting Risk Assessments, Compliance Best Practices and Administrator Shadowing (Part Three of Three),” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 7, No. 1 (Jan. 9, 2014).