SEC Rule 17a-3 & FINRA Records Retention Requirements Explained

Financial industry recordkeeping regulatory requirements like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Rules 17a-3 and 17a-4, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Rules 4511 and 2210, play a crucial role in maintaining the integrity of the U.S. financial markets. These regulations are not just bureaucratic formalities; their oversight involves ensuring that financial services firms adhere to stringent record retention requirements, essential for the transparency, accountability, and trust that underpin the financial system.

Complying with your industry's record keeping regulations may seem like a given; yet stories of non-compliance continue to circulate in the news. Unaware of the significant harms of failing to meet regulations, many organizations are overlooking compliance as a major priority. Let's take a look at a few reasons why compliance should always sit at the top of your organization's priority list, and the costs you can avoid by doing so.

What’s the deal? In recent news, the SEC has made amendments to reporting requirements for investment advisors, changing the way in which the SEC evaluates the risk profiles of investment advisors, and helping to reduce the likelihood of fraudulent activity. The amendments concern what’s known as “Form ADV”, a form required for investment advisors to register with the SEC. A large part of the form asks investment advisors for details on their business, including their clients’ history, employees, business practices etc.

We touched base with our financial services client, Jason Wenk, CEO of Retirement Wealth Advisors to find out how PageFreezer has helped his business meet regulations and focus on what they do best - helping clients live more enjoyable lives with smarter financial planning.

Ever since social media first came into our lives with the emergence of platforms like MySpace in the early 2000s, it has shown no signs of slowing down. Today, over 30% of the world’s population utilizes some type of online community. In the U.S, that number amounts to 73%. Facebook itself has more active users than China’s entire population of 1.40 billion! While social media offers the benefits of extended reach, flexibility and freedom as a means of communication, financial services firms can find themselves at serious risk if they fail to archive social media content like other business communications.