The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that William Birdthistle, the Director of the Division of Investment Management, will depart the agency, effective March 8, 2024. Natasha Vij Greiner, currently the Deputy Director of the Division of Examinations, will be named Director of the Division of Investment Management upon Mr. Birdthistle’s departure. The Division oversees regulatory policy for investment advisers and investment companies, including mutual funds and other investment products and services relied upon by retail investors.

“I am grateful to William for his service to the SEC and to the investing public,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “William has overseen our work to strengthen oversight of investment companies and investment advisers – from data reporting to fund names to money market reforms. These reforms will help American investors save for homes, college, and retirement.”

Chair Gensler added, “I thank Natasha for taking on this new role as Division Director. Natasha brings deep and broad expertise to the Division, both having led the agency's Investment Adviser/Investment Company examination program and having served in other key leadership roles over her more than two decades at the SEC.”

Mr. Birdthistle joined the SEC in December 2021. In his time at the SEC, Mr. Birdthistle oversaw the adoption of major rulemakings related to private fund advisers and their reporting on Form PF, as well as to public funds, including money market fund reforms, tailored shareholder reports, and revisions to the fund Names Rule. He also inaugurated the SEC’s annual Conference on Emerging Trends in Asset Management.

Prior to joining the SEC, Mr. Birdthistle was on the faculty at Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he earned the school’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2010. He also has served as a visiting professor of law at the University of Chicago Law School, where he won the Award for Teaching Excellence in 2019. Earlier in his career, he practiced law at Ropes & Gray in Boston for five years as a corporate associate in the firm’s investment management practice. Mr. Birdthistle received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he served as managing editor of the Harvard Law Review; a B.A. summa cum laude in English and psychology from Duke University in 1995; and an M.A. in history from the University of Chicago in 2021. Following his departure from the SEC, he will rejoin academia.

“Serving at the Securities and Exchange Commission has been the highest honor of my professional career, and I’m tremendously grateful for the inspiration and example set by my dedicated colleagues in the Division of Investment Management,” said Mr. Birdthistle. “I am particularly thankful to Chair Gensler for offering me this opportunity to join a cohort of exemplary public servants in their vigilant stewardship of America’s life savings.”

In addition to serving as Deputy Director of the Division of Examinations, Ms. Greiner is the National Associate Director of the Investment Adviser/Investment Company (IA/IC) examination program, which includes the Private Funds Unit, and is the Associate Director of the Home Office IA/IC examination program. She began her SEC career in the Division of Examinations (formerly OCIE) as a broker-dealer examiner and has served in a variety of roles across the agency for more than 22 years, including Acting Chief Counsel and Assistant Chief Counsel in the Division of Trading and Markets, where she provided legal and policy advice to the Commission on rules affecting market participants and the operation of the securities markets. Before that, Ms. Greiner worked in the Division of Enforcement, including in its Asset Management Unit, where she investigated possible violations of the federal securities laws and litigated matters in federal district court and administrative proceedings. Ms. Greiner received her J.D. from The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law and graduated cum laude with a B.S. degree from James Madison University.

“I am excited for the opportunity to lead the exceptional staff in the Division of Investment Management,” said Ms. Greiner. “I have been fortunate to work with dedicated and talented staff across the agency during my SEC tenure and have a great respect for the staff and the work of the Commission. I look forward to bringing my unique perspective and experience to this new role and continuing to support the SEC’s tripartite mission.”