Tag Archives: Compliance

What Advisers Can Expect on Examination Requests from the SEC

Posted on March 18, 2011 by in Compliance

Steelbridge Compliance, a compliance consulting firm to investment advisers based in Dallas, Tex. (located just a mile from FPPad world headquarters), yesterday released a copy of a recent examination request list from the SEC.

The request document is 28 pages and covers much of the standard areas for inspection including trading history, itemized lists of all client accounts, and two years of all email history.

Notably absent from the February 2011 document is a request for the adviser’s use of social media, including Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Click here to visit the Steelbridge Compliance blog and download the notice.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for December 31

Posted on December 31, 2010 by in Bits & Bytes

This is it, the final Bits and Bytes post of 2010. Bits and Bytes has drawn consistent traffic week after week, so we will continue our efforts to publish what we think are the best tech-related stories for financial advisers from around the web.

Here are this week’s stories of interest, and have a Happy New Year:

Custodians taking closer look at adviser compliance from InvestmentNews.com

Custodial firms have been raising the compliance bar for registered investment advisers, in some cases making it tougher for them to find a home.

Why B-Ds Should Embrace Social Media Now from Financial-Planning.com

Social media is the elephant in the room even if broker-dealer firms refuse to acknowledge its presence. Worse, continuing to do so could cost these firms their top talent as advisors migrate to platforms that help them be more productive.

Small Companies Look to Cloud for Savings in 2011 from WSJ.com

A growing number of small-business owners are expected to try cloud computing services next year, hoping to trim costs and stay up and running if disaster strikes.

Rock Point Advisors Leverages Advent’s Moxy(R) as a Standalone Solution from TradingMarkets.com

Advent Software, Inc., a leading provider of software and services for the global investment management industry, today announced that investment management firm, Rock Point Advisors, is enjoying the benefits of Moxy(R) as a standalone solution. Rock Point is one of the first advisory firms to use Moxy(R) in conjunction with PortfolioCenter(R), Schwab Performance Technologies’ portfolio management solution.

Independent Broker/Dealers Warming Up To Social Media

Posted on June 18, 2010 by in Compliance

Like it or not, social media in financial services has been a recurring topic in the industry this year. The big question for FINRA-regulated registered representatives and SEC-regulated investment advisers is how to engage in social media activities without violating compliance rules (even after FINRA released its guidance on using social networking websites).

In the first significant step in the broker/dealer environment, Cambridge Investment Research announced that it plans to support their representatives’ use of social media by adopting compliance and monitoring software from Socialware.

Click here to read the announcement from Financial Planning Magazine online.

FPPad subscribers have read about Austin, Tx. based Socialware before and their tools that help advisers and representatives satisfy compliance requirements when using social media websites.

The fact that Cambridge is stepping up to the plate and giving the tentative green light to its reps means more and more financial professionals will be able to manage social media profiles to engage in conversations with clients and prospects.

Upcoming Financial Adviser Webcast Series: Guide to Going Digital

Posted on May 10, 2010 by in Compliance, Professional Development

I joined a fantastic team at Revenue Architects to deliver a series of financial adviser webcasts to help advisers accelerate their online presence.

Revenue Architects is an expert network of independent marketing, sales, and technology professionals aligned to support the diverse needs for adviser revenue performance. All the details of Revenue Architects can be viewed on their website, http://www.revenuearchitects.com/

I’m presenting the Guide to Going Digital webcast with John Stone, CEO of Revenue Architects, on Tuesday, June 08, 2010 from 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM (ET). The webcast details can be viewed here: http://www.revenuearchitects.com/events-and-webcasts/

FPPad readers are eligible for a 10% discount off the webcast registration. Enter the code FPPadDigital to receive your discount. The code is valid for all four of the events in the Financial Adviser Webcast series.

I hope you consider joining the webcast if you’re serious about growing your presence in the rapidly evolving digital world.

Smarsh, Socialware Partner to Command Social Media Compliance Market

Posted on May 4, 2010 by in Compliance

I’d like to be able to say that I saw this coming, but that’s not entirely the case.

Today, Smarsh, Inc. the leading email archive solution provider to financial advisers, and Socialware, a provider of social media archive and policy enforcement tools, announced a partnership to combine their respective technologies to provide one solution for messaging and social media governance and compliance.

Click here to view the press release on Smarsh’s website.

I’ve written about both Smarsh and Socialware before, and while each company’s products could help advisers comply with regulatory requirements when using social media, neither offered an all-in-one solution. Smarsh dominates the archiving market, but lacks coverage in the social media space. Socialware commands the social media space, but doesn’t specialize in compliant archiving.

So I view the partnership as a very promising relationship in support of an all-in-one social media compliance solution to satisfy FINRA and SEC regulatory requirements.

I hope to be able to check out the offering in the future and report back on its capabilities (either here or in my other media outlets).

Read My First Practices Column in the Journal of Financial Planning

Posted on May 3, 2010 by in Professional Development

I had the privilege of being asked to contribute to the Practices series of this month’s Journal of Financial Planning. The Journal of Financial Planning is the core publication of the Financial Planning Association with the mission to expand the body of knowledge of the financial planning profession.

For my first column, I described many of the best tools and techniques planners and advisers can use to roll out a successful social media strategy.

Click here to read Tools and Techniques to Leverage Social Media (link is good only for the month of May).

I always appreciate comments and feedback, so please let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.

Socialware Launches Social Media Archive Service, Rebrands Website

Posted on March 23, 2010 by in Compliance, Technology

I’ve made several mentions on FPPad about Socialware, an emerging provider of social media archive and policy enforcement tools, but I’ve yet to include a full feature of their services.

Today, Socialware announced several new initiatives to better serve the market of individuals and small and medium businesses (SMBs). The full announcement can be viewed on the Socialware blog.

What do these changes mean to advisers?

Read More…

FPA of Maryland Webinar to Address Compliance Issues of Social Media

Posted on March 20, 2010 by in Practice Management

Despite FINRA’s issuance of social media regulatory guidance, advisors still have many questions about what can and cannot be done on social media websites.

I’ll be presenting a webinar to the Financial Planning Association of Maryland to address the compliance issues of using social media and networking websites.

I’ll be joined by Adam Schaub, CFP®, Compliance Manager for 1st Global in Dallas, TX. Topics covered will include:

  • Documentation of policies and procedures
  • Summary of regulatory guidance
  • Supervision and record retention
  • Overview of compliance tools and utilities

The webinar will be held on Thursday, April 1, 12:00PM EDT. FPA of Maryland members can attend for $20, all others can attend for $30.

Click here for the event PDF brochure. |  Click here to register.

FINRA Issues Guidance to Firms, Brokers on Communications with Public Through Social Networking Web Sites

Posted on January 25, 2010 by in Technology

That’s right, FINRA just released guidance on the use of social media webistes!

Click here to read the release on FINRA’s website.

Here are several links to coverage, reviews, and feedback by folks I follow in the blogosphere and social media space:

Is iPhone Security Adequate for Financial Advisers?

Posted on January 6, 2010 by in Technology

Here’s a quick update to share an article I recently discovered concerning security of data on iPhones.

While this article is directed to lawyers, it is directly applicable to financial advisers who use iPhones to access information about clients.

But don’t the iPhone 3G’s encryption and unlock code features protect data from nefarious characters? No they don’t, according to Sharon D. Nelson, Esq. and John W. Simek of Sensei Enterprises, Inc.

Click here to read their article, Why Lawyers Shouldn’t Use The iPhone: A Security Nightmare.