Being a registered investment advisor isn’t easy. You may have chosen this profession because you have great business and investment sense, a drive to help others manage their wealth, and a desire to build a solid financial foundation of your own. But working in this industry also requires strict adherence to a slew of complex […]
On April 16, 2019, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) published a Risk Alert dealing with Regulation S-P, which is the Commission’s primary rule governing privacy notices and the safeguarding policies of Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs), as well as broker-dealers. The Risk Alert guidance is derived from recent examinations of RIAs […]
SmartRIA today announced an integration with SS&Cs’ Black Diamond Wealth Platform to significantly streamline the surveillance of compliance activities for well-established RIA firms. The direct connection between the two systems allows RIA firms to use Black Diamond data within SmartRIA. The shared data creates a 360-degree view of client households, which facilitates surveillance of mission […]
Investment advisers may have noticed the SEC’s recent Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative and thought they had nothing to learn from the 79 enforcement actions. The reality is that even investment advisers who are not affiliated with a broker-dealer can learn valuable lessons from these enforcement actions. Lessons learned from Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative […]
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) publishes annually its examination priorities to promote transparency and provide insights into the areas it believes pose a heightened risk to investors or to the integrity of the U.S. capital markets. OCIE’s priorities are designed to support the SEC’s mission, which is to protect investors and […]
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) periodically publishes Risk Alerts to highlight compliance problems discovered during examinations. On October 31, 2018, OCIE circulated a Risk Alert that analyzes compliance issues pertaining to Rule 206(4)-3 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, otherwise known as the Cash Solicitation Rule. Generally, investment advisers required […]
We are seeing quite an uptick in Advisors undergoing regulatory exams. Therefore, as a service to you we are providing the following information in regard to regulatory exams. The SEC’s Office of Compliance, Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) is responsible for administering exams. Generally, the initial notification of an exam will reference that the staff of […]
Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs) owe a duty to supervise persons associated with the firm with respect to activities performed on their behalf. In recent deficiencies letters, RIAs have been criticized for failing to adequately supervise their supervised persons, including, Investment Adviser Representatives (IARs). RIAs must implement written supervisory procedures to govern the conduct of supervised persons. […]
On July 20, 2018, the SEC announced the settlement of charges against a Beverly Hills-based Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) and its majority owner, because the firm improperly refused to refund unearned advisory fees to 63 clients who left the firm. The RIA also made material misstatements in written disclosures to clients regarding the firm’s financial […]
On July 10, 2018, the SEC settled enforcement actions brought against two SEC-Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs), three Investment Adviser Representatives (IARs), and a marketing consultant, for their involvement in violating the Testimonial Rule using social media and the Internet. Rule 206(4)-1(a)(1) under the Investment Advisers Act sets forth what types of advertisements are prohibited. The […]
