The Securities and Exchange Commission is floating a rule that would flip the default method for sending investors their required disclosures, moving the industry away from paper mailings and toward electronic delivery as the standard practice.
Under the proposed Regulation E-Delivery rule, issuers, investment advisers, broker-dealers and other market intermediaries would be able to send required regulatory information electronically without first obtaining an investor's affirmative consent, according to an SEC fact sheet describing the proposal.
That's as opposed to the current framework, where most disclosures are still delivered on paper unless a client actively chooses otherwise.
For advisers, the shift is meant to close a gap between how firms are required to communicate and how clients actually want to receive information.
In a statement Thursday, SEC Chair Paul Atkins said the proposal represents "another stride toward a regulatory framework suitable for the modern era," highlighting it as a key pillar of his broader easing agenda.
The proposal was developed jointly by the agency's Divisions of Investment Management, Corporation Finance, and Trading and Markets, with analytical support from the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis.
Investors would not lose the ability to stick with paper. The rule would still allow covered recipients to opt out of e-delivery and request paper copies free of charge, and it includes a transition process requiring two paper notices for investors currently on paper before they are moved to electronic delivery by default.
The proposal is built around three categories of parties: covered entities that must deliver information, covered recipients who are entitled to receive it, and covered information itself, which the SEC defines broadly as anything a firm is legally required to send.
A firm could rely on the new framework where a recipient has provided an electronic address, the firm has clearly disclosed it will use that address for delivery, and the recipient has not opted out.
The mechanics vary depending on what's being sent. For disclosures that don't include personal financial information, firms could deliver documents directly to a client's email or electronic address. For anything containing personal financial information, firms would instead have to send a notice pointing the recipient to a website where the material is posted. The proposal would also exempt covered information from the consumer-consent requirements of the federal E-SIGN Act and would rescind Rule 30e-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, along with amendments to how proxy and tender offer materials are distributed.
Commissioner Hester Peirce, in a supporting statement, noted that the change addresses only the delivery method rather than what firms must disclose or how it must be formatted. She said she hopes the shift eventually opens the door to more interactive and customized disclosure formats that paper cannot support.
Retirement and fund industry groups that have pushed for e-delivery reform for years welcomed the announcement.
Emily Micale, director of federal regulatory affairs at the Insured Retirement Institute, said modernizing delivery requirements has been an organization priority and is part of its 2026 Federal Retirement Security Blueprint. She said electronic delivery is more cost-effective and faster than paper and creates room for dynamic, real-time information rather than static documents.
"Importantly, the proposal preserves consumer choice, the approach IRI has consistently advocated," Micale said. "We are reviewing the proposal with our member companies and look forward to providing feedback to the Commission during the public comment process."
The Investment Company Institute went further, framing the rule change in dollar terms for shareholders. ICI President and CEO Eric J. Pan said the proposed digital shift – which it has previously advocated for – would replace an outdated paper-based framework with an alternative that improves efficiency without weakening investor protections.
"ICI’s research shows funds and their shareholders could save $3 billion to $4 billion over five years from transitioning to e-delivery," Pan said. "The vast majority of fund shareholders, including 87% of seniors, support this regulatory change. This proposed rule would align disclosure requirements with how Americans prefer to receive information in the 21st century."
The public comment period will stay open for 60 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register.
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