Agents of Broker-Dealers and Agents of Issuers

If you took the SAT in high school or any number of graduate school exams, one thing is certain—you’re familiar with the analogy question. These were the questions that would ask you something like “shoes are to feet as glove is to _.” (“Hand” is the answer, in case you were stumped). Well, to permanently solidify in your mind what an agent is, an analogy may do the trick. So, here goes:

Investment adviser representative is to investment adviser as agent is to broker-dealer or issuer.

In other words, an agent has a nearly identical relationship to a broker-dealer or