Tobias Salinger of Financial Planning reports that compliance experts are saying, “President Trump’s anti-regulation agenda will yield fewer but more focused SEC and FINRA examinations.” Even so, the SEC recently submitted its budget request and still estimates it will examine 13% of SEC-registered investment advisers in 2018, representing the same percentage projected for 2017.¹
Firms can, and should still, be well prepared by staying ahead of examiners and ensuring their policies are up to date and focused on agency “hot topics.” These topics are discussed in Salinger’s article with a major focus on cybersecurity. In addition, RIA firms need to ensure that deficiencies from prior exams are properly addressed and that key risks have been identified and mitigated.
If you are not certain how ready your RIA is for an audit, let Red Oak assist you in being prepared for your next regulatory exam.
About Red Oak Compliance Solutions
Red Oak Compliance Solutions is the global advertising review software of choice in the financial services industry. It is a comprehensive suite of SEC 17A-4 compliant features that are 100% books and records compliant and provides clients with 35% faster approvals and 70% fewer touches or better. We also offer Smart Review(SM), which solves for the storage and maintenance of disclosures, helping firms reduce risk, decrease review times, and increase the speed of distribution of marketing materials. Smart Registration(SM) automates the licensing and registration management process to help reduce regulatory risk and time spent on manual processes. Overall, Red Oak allows firms to minimize risk, reduce costs, and increase compliance review process effectiveness and efficiencies.