M. Owen Donley III

Chief Counsel, Office of Investor Education and Advocacy U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Owen Donley serves as Chief Counsel of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, where he manages a team of subject matter experts in providing public-facing content for retail investors on a broad variety of issues arising under the federal securities laws. He is especially focused on investor engagement though the lens of financial technology and media, particularly where digital and social communication intersect with retail investing.  He has managed national advertising campaigns focused on investor education, including the SEC’s HoweyCoins crypto-asset campaign, and speaks regularly on issues related to social media and investor protection, fraud, and the interests of retail investors.

Owen has been cited in publications including The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNNMoney, MarketWatch, SmartMoney Magazine, Consumers Digest, Forbes, ThinkAdviser, Investment News, and Financial Advisor, and has appeared on television and radio, including on Canada’s Business News Network and National Public Radio. He is the author of several articles, and manages the Office of Investor Education and Advocacy’s Twitter handle, @SEC_Investor_Ed.

Before joining the Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, he was a Senior Counsel in the SEC’s Office of the General Counsel, where he focused primarily on legal policy and enforcement matters.  Prior to working at the SEC, Owen was an associate at Sutherland Asbill and Brennan LLP in Washington, D.C., and a law clerk in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.