If you’ve ever been frustrated by a financial advisor who insists on returning your texts with emails, phone calls, meeting requests, or even actual paperwork, there’s likely a good reason behind their old-fashioned ways. Their firm’s Written Supervisory Procedures (WSPs) might prohibit text messaging for business purposes, particularly on personal devices. Such policies are often put in place to protect the consumer, advisors, and the firm, in an attempt to guarantee that all business electronic communications are documented and available for discovery procedures or for regulatory examinations and audits.
Today, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the largest non-governmental regulatory body overseeing the securities industry, has stepped up investigations of member firms and advisors that don’t have adequate retention and supervision of electronic communications.
