8/9/2010
Last week we answered whether having a letter of authorization constitutes custody (IA Watch, Aug. 2, 2010). Keith Marks, a partner at Ascendant Compliance Management in Salisbury, Conn., agreed we got the answer correct but felt we weren't terribly artful in our explanation.First, he says, you must ...
Indexed by:
8/2/2010
You may be asking this same question if a client or trustee has granted your firm permission through an LOA to dip into his account to pay taxes or make a trustee or beneficiary distribution.We asked the SEC the question and were referred to the agency's FAQs, specifically questions II.5 and II.6, w ...
Indexed by:
6/21/2010
Those most recent FAQs from the SEC about its custody rule apparently haven't resolved all inquiries (IA Watch, May 31, 2010). We have come upon some additional answers from an SEC official.The first concerns whether the rule's expectation that an RIA would engage in "due inquiry" that custodians ar ...
Indexed by:
5/31/2010
Many firms should be happy with the responses from the SEC in the agency's latest release this month of nine new or revised SEC FAQs tied to the revised custody rule. The biggest one makes clear that the agency wouldn't consider a firm to have custody if it has permission to withdraw or transfer fun ...
Indexed by:
05/21/2010
RIAs would not be considered to have custody of client assets simply by having the written authority to transfer client assets among different qualified custodians. However, having a client’s ID and password to rebalance a pension account could be considered as custody if the adviser can move client ...
Indexed by:
05/21/2010
Here are more FAQs provided by the SEC for its custody rule. These are the additions released May 20, 2010.
Indexed by:
5/17/2010
Those surprise audits called for by the SEC's revised custody rule by definition dictate that you won't know when they'll occur but this doesn't mean you can't be ready when they do.You should be able to produce "at almost a touch of a button" a list of clients for whom you have custody, account bal ...
Indexed by:
5/10/2010
You know the SEC may well contact your clients about the safety of their assets during exams (IA Watch, March 23, 2009). Now the Commission has established a Web site to educate the investing public about the issue and the agency's new rules regarding custody. One of the Q&A examples on the page cou ...
Indexed by:
4/26/2010
The newly revised custody rule includes two requirements that went into effect with the rule March 12: (1) Include a legend with statements to clients with newly opened accounts and (2) have a reasonable belief that your custodian is delivering statements to your clients.You should have in place or ...
Indexed by:
4/12/2010
The owners of the RIA act as trustees to the firm's 401(k) plan. However, this in and of itself wouldn't subject it to the new annual surprise exam requirement under the altered custody rule. But read carefully one of the SEC's recent FAQs and the result shifts if the adviser happens to manage a sma ...
Indexed by: