Series 53: Opening Customer Accounts

Opening Customer Accounts

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board requires broker-dealers to obtain and record certain information about new customers before completing the first transaction in a new account. To comply with this requirement, a customer typically is asked to fill out a new client account form. The form should record the following information:

• • Name
• • Residential or business address
• • Date of birth (to ensure that the customer is of legal age)
• • Social security or tax ID number
• • Occupation and employer (and disclosure of whether the customer is employed by another broker-dealer)
• • Employer’s address
• • Whether it is a cash or margin account
• • Any third party trading authorization or discretionary authorization
• • Suitability information, such as a customer’s financial status, tax status, investment objec