Recent developments suggest a potential inflection point in the proxy advisory landscape. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s decision to discontinue the use of proxy advisory firms in favor of an internal, AI-driven voting platform, combined with escalating regulatory, legislative, and enforcement activity targeting the industry, signals heightened scrutiny of the role and influence of proxy advisors in U.S. capital markets. In this alert, we examine JPMorgan’s move, the broader regulatory and political backdrop, and what these developments may mean for plan fiduciaries, asset managers, and public companies navigating proxy voting and governance decisions in a rapidly evolving environment. 

On January 28, 2026, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance, Division of Investment Management, and Division of Trading and Markets jointly issued a Statement on the taxonomies associated with various products marketed as “tokenized securities.” The Statement confirmed what has been previously expressed in public statements: tokenization does not alter the legal status of a security or lessen regulatory obligations.