SCOTT FRIESTAD NAMED ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF SEC'S DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2005-45

Washington, D.C., March 30, 2005 - The Securities and Exchange Commission today named Scott W. Friestad Associate Director of the Commission's Division of Enforcement. As Associate Director, Mr. Friestad will serve as a senior official in the Division of Enforcement and will assist in planning and directing the Commission's investigations and other enforcement efforts.

Since July 2000, Mr. Friestad has served as an Assistant Director in the Commission's Enforcement Division, which he joined in 1995 as a staff attorney. During his tenure at the Commission, Mr. Friestad has overseen a number of high-profile investigations in every major program area. His work has contributed to significant Commission enforcement actions involving Regulation FD, public company accounting and disclosure, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, insider trading and broker-dealer regulation. In addition, Mr. Friestad has served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.

Stephen M. Cutler, the SEC's Director of Enforcement said, "Scott Friestad is a creative thinker who has mastered the securities laws. Scott has earned the respect and confidence of everyone with whom he has worked. The Division and the investing public are fortunate, and I am delighted, that Scott will continue to bring his tireless energies, exceptional intelligence and exemplary demeanor to the Commission's enforcement program."

Prior to joining the Commission, Mr. Friestad was a litigator at the law firm of Dewey Ballantine in New York. Mr. Friestad, 42, earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Iowa.

http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2005-45.htm