Chapter
VARIOUS FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY TO FINANCIAL PLANNERS AND THEIR ACTIVITIES
Financial Planners Are Primarily Regulated by Federal and State Investment Adviser Laws
Financial Planners Are Subject to Broker-Dealer and Insurance Laws When Acting in Those Capacities
Federal and State Laws and Regulations Can Apply to the Use of Marketing Materials and Financial Planning Titles and Designations
REGULATORY STRUCTURE FOR FINANCIAL PLANNERS COVERS MOST ACTIVITIES, BUT SOME CONSUMER PROTECTION ISSUES EXIST, AND DATA TRACKING COMPLAINTS AND REGULATORY ACTIONS AGAINST PLANNERS ARE LIMITED
Existing Regulation Covers Most Financial Planning Services
Consumers May Not Understand That Financial Planners Have Potential Conflicts of Interest When Selling Products
Consumers May be Confused about the Ways Financial Professionals Present Themselves to the Public
Consumer Complaints and Enforcements Actions Appear to be Relatively Limited, but Regulators Generally Do Not Track Data Specific to Financial Planners
SOME CHANGES IN THE OVERSIGHT OF FINANCIAL PLANNERS COULD BE BENEFICIAL, BUT MOST STAKEHOLDERS BELIEVE SUBSTANTIAL OVERHAUL
IS NOT NEEDED
Stakeholders Have Suggested a Variety of Approaches to the Regulation of Financial Planners
Creation of a Board to Oversee Financial Planners
Augmenting Oversight of Investment Advisers with an SRO
Extending Coverage of the Fiduciary Standard
Clarifying Financial Planners’ Credentials and Standards
Most Stakeholders Saw Little Need for an Additional Oversight Body Governing Financial Planners
APPENDIX I. SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY
Chapter 2:
STUDY AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON IMPROVED INVESTOR ACCESS TO REGISTRATION INFORMATION ABOUT INVESTMENT ADVISERS AND
BROKER-DEALERS
A. The Congressional Mandate
B. Organization of the Study
III. BACKGROUND: REGISTRATION INFORMATION PERTINENT TO INVESTORS AND AN OVERVIEW OF SOURCES OF PUBLICLY-AVAILABLE DATA
A. Registration Information Pertinent to Investors
B. Access to BrokerCheck and IAPD
C. Overview of Sources of Publicly-Available Data Regarding Broker-Dealers, Investment Advisers, and Their Associated Persons
IV. BROKER-DEALER REGISTRATION AND DISCLOSURE
A. History of CRD and BrokerCheck
B. Data Available on BrokerCheck
C. BrokerCheck Format and Usage
V. INVESTMENT ADVISER REGISTRATION
AND DISCLOSURE
A. History of IARD and IAPD
B. Data Available on IARD and IAPD
VI. COMPARATIVE NATURE OF INFORMATION DISCLOSED IN BROKERCHECK AND IAPD
A. Near-Term Recommendations
1. Further Centralizing Access to CRD and IARD Through Use of a Unified Search Function
2. Add Search by ZIP Code or Other Indicator of Location
3. Add Educational Content
B. Intermediate-Term Recommendation – Continued Analysis of BrokerCheck and IAPD
Financial Planners, Investment Advisers and Broker Dealers: Oversight and Access to Registration Information
( Financial Institutions and Services )
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