The director of the Enforcement Division at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) spelled out plainly his view on the best path to earning cooperation credit during settlement negotiations with the agency.

Gurbir Grewal spoke to the topic during remarks delivered at a securities enforcement event last week. The SEC published the transcript of the speech this week.

“As numerous recent enforcement matters have shown, there are real benefits to parties that cooperate with commission investigations,” Grewal said. “These benefits can affect both the charges (e.g., declinations) and the remedies (e.g., reduced or zero civil penalties) the division may recommend and that the commission may ultimately impose.”