The Securities and Exchange Commission announced its examination priorities for 2014 this week, a road map for how exchanges, self-regulatory organizations, and broker-dealers will be scrutinized throughout the coming months.

The examination priorities published on Thursday stress fraud detection and prevention, corporate governance, enterprise risk management, technology controls, issues posed by the convergence of broker-dealer and investment adviser businesses and new rules and regulations, and retirement investments and rollovers.

"We are publishing these priorities to highlight areas that we perceive to have heightened risk,” said Andrew Bowden, director of the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations, in a statement. “Along with our risk alerts and other public statements, this will help us increase transparency, strengthen compliance, and inform the public and the financial services industry about key risks that we are monitoring and examining.”

For investment advisers and investment companies, the SEC will focus on advisers who have never been previously examined (including new private fund advisers), wrap fee programs, quantitative trading models, and payments to mutual fund distributors. Broker-dealers can expect extra scrutiny on sales practices, fraud, issues in the fixed-income market, and trading issues, including compliance with the SEC's market access rule.

Risk-based examinations of securities exchanges and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) will also be stepped-up, with extra attention on pre-launch reviews of new exchange applicants. Transfer agents will be evaluated for accurate recordkeeping and safeguarding assets. Clearing agencies designated as systemically important will be required to conduct annual examinations, as required by the Dodd-Frank Act, and pre-launch reviews of new clearing agency applicants.

The SEC announcement notes that the priorities listed for 2014 “are not exhaustive” and may be adjusted throughout the year. The list was selected by senior exam staff and managers and other SEC divisions in consultation with the chair and other commissioners. The items flagged were developed by reviewing a variety of information sources, including: tips, complaints and referrals, including from whistleblowers; registrants' required filings with the SEC; previous examinations; consultations with international regulators; reviewing industry and media publications; data in third party databases; and conversations with registrants and industry groups.