Gary Gensler of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released the full text of his testimony before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, which revealed that the work of the enforcement department is at the core of the SEC's investor protection responsibilities. In fiscal year 2023, the SEC took 784 enforcement actions, with fines and recoveries reaching $4.9 billion. Where feasible, civil penalties and recoveries obtained by the SEC in civil enforcement actions will be returned to harmed investors, and $930 million was distributed to harmed investors in fiscal year 2023.