Securities Names Amber Crouch As General Counsel

LITTLE ROCK—The Arkansas Securities Department (ASD) announced Thursday that Amber Crouch has been promoted to general counsel following the retirement of the ASD’s long-serving chief attorney, David Smith. As general counsel, Crouch will supervise the staff attorneys and manage the legal affairs of the ASD.

Crouch has previous experience with the ASD and a securities-industry background. She worked as a staff attorney from 2010 to 2016 and returned to the ASD as a staff attorney in November 2021. She is active in the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) and serves on its Broker-Dealer Operations Project Group, a group she co-chaired in 2016. Crouch also maintains qualifications as a general and municipal securities representative and principal and compliance officer.

“Amber’s extensive industry and regulatory experience make her the right person to lead the ASD’s legal division,” Interim Commissioner Campbell McLaurin said. “Arkansans should have confidence that our legal staff will be proactive under Amber’s leadership in detecting fraud and bringing appropriate enforcement actions to protect investors from bad actors.”

Prior to returning to the ASD, Crouch was the regulatory counsel and senior compliance officer for the Little Rock-based investment firm Crews & Associates Inc. While with Crews, she served on the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Fixed Income Committee. Before attending law school, Crouch worked for U.S. Senator Blanche L. Lincoln for five years.

“I am truly honored to continue serving the state alongside my dedicated ASD colleagues in this new position. I believe my unique securities-industry perspective and past work with federal and state regulators will be particularly helpful in fostering the ASD’s mission and its vital role in promoting sensible regulation, efficient securities and financial markets, and effective investor education and protection.”

Crouch graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law with her Juris Doctor, with honors. She is currently president-elect of the Quapaw Quarter Association and on the Alumni Board of the Bowen School of Law.