Are FTX account holders covered by SIPC?

The answer: only SEC-registered broker-dealers offer SIPC insurance. Crypto platforms like FTX are not SEC-registered broker-dealers. Continue reading

The answer: only SEC-registered broker-dealers offer SIPC insurance. Crypto platforms like FTX are not SEC-registered broker-dealers.

SIPC stands for Securities Investor Protection Corporation. It was created in 1970 after several brokerage firms went belly up and as a result customers were wiped out.

All brokerage firms that sell stocks or bonds to the public, or that clear securities transactions are required to be members of SIPC. SIPC is a nonprofit corporation owned by its members. Member firms pay into a general insurance fund used to meet customer claims in case of bankruptcy.

If a broker-dealer goes bankrupt, SIPC provides insurance for the assets in investors brokerage accounts. SIPC may also offer insurance to customers from unauthorized trading in, or theft from, their securities accounts.

SIPC members must display an official sign showing their membership. Today that usually means “member SIPC” at the bottom of the brokerage firm’s home page, but if there is a physical office for customers then the requirement sign or plaque in a visible place.

What you need to know about SIPC if you’re taking the SIE exam

If you’re taking the FINRA Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) exam you need to know the following about SIPC:

SIPC offers up to $500,000 in coverage per customer for securities and cash, with a $250,000 limit for cash only. So if a broker-dealer firm goes bankrupt, then SIPC and the court-appointed Trustee work to return customers’ securities and cash as quickly as possible.

SIPC does not protect against all losses. For example, if the financial markets go down, and the value of customers’ assets declines, SIPC does not cover these type of losses.

If a customer has both a cash and margin account, the accounts are combined for SIPC coverage purposes.

To repeat, SIPC covers a maximum of $500,000 per “separate customer” at a broker-dealer or clearing firm—including up to $250,000 in cash. Total coverage can be higher for multiple accounts owned by the same person if the accounts are considered to be held by separate customers. There are five categories of separate customers defined by SIPC. These categories include (1) individual accounts; (2) joint accounts; (3) accounts held by executors, administrators, and guardians/custodians/conservators (such as UGMA accounts); (4) accounts held by corporations, partnerships, or unincorporated associations; and (5) trust accounts.

So if you are taking the SIE exam, and you get a question that asks if someone has $300,000 in a individual brokerage account, and $200,000 in a joint brokerage account with a spouse, and $400,000 in a trust account, all with the same broker-dealer, how much is covered by SIPC in the event the firm goes bankrupt?  Because all three accounts are considered to be held by separate customers, the correct answer is $900,000 or all of the funds. 

If your SIE exam asks how much is SIPC covered if the market falls dramatically and the value in an investor’s account drops by half, the correct answer is zero, because SIPC only covers investor losses due to broker-dealer failure, not due to market losses.

Curious about the Solomon Learning System? Watch the video overview!

Watch the latest Solomon Exam Prep video for a complete look at the Solomon learning system and what it offers students and firms. Continue reading

Solomon Exam Prep has helped thousands of financial professionals pass their FINRA, NASAA, MSRB, and NFA licensing exams. Watch the video for a complete look at the Solomon learning system and what it offers students and firms.

To explore Solomon Exam Prep study materials for 21 different securities licensing exams, including the SIE and the Series 3, 6, 7, 14, 22, 24, 26, 27, 28, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 63, 65, 66, 79, 82, and 99, visit the Solomon website.

November Study Question of the Month

This month’s study question from the Solomon Online Exam Simulator question database is now available. Continue reading

This month’s study question from the Solomon Online Exam Simulator question database is now available.

***Comment below or submit your answer to info@solomonexamprep.com to be entered to win a $20 Starbucks gift card.***

This question is relevant for the SIE and Series 7, 14, 24, 26, 27, 28, 51, 53, 65, 66, and 99 exams.

Question:

Which situation would a CTR need to be filed?

Answer Choices:

A. When a customer regularly, but on different days, deposits $9,900 into their account in cash.

B. When a person deposits checks for $11,000 every week.

C. A customer withdraws $10,500 from their account in cash.

D. A customer makes a $20,000 Venmo transaction.

Correct Answer: C

Explanation: A currency transaction report (CTR) is filed with FinCEN on cash transactions that exceed $10,000 in a single day, whether conducted in one transaction or several smaller ones. The transactions can be either deposits or withdrawals and they must be in cold, hard cash.

If You’re a Principal or Operations Professional, Your FINRA Exam Deadline May Be Extended

If you’re a newly promoted principal at your firm, FINRA may have just delivered you some good news. Continue reading

If you’re a newly promoted principal at your firm, FINRA may have just delivered you some good news.

In response to current events, FINRA has adopted a temporary rule change giving many new principals until December 31st to complete their FINRA exams.

To qualify for the extension, the principal must have been promoted from representative by her firm before September 3rd.

Among the principals included in the extension are General Securities Principals (Series 24), Financial and Operations Principals (Series 27 or 28), Investment Company/Variable Contract Limited Principals (Series 26), and Compliance Officers (Series 14).

The extension also applies to one rep-level license. Operations Professionals (Series 99) hired before September 3rd also have until December 31st to pass their exams.

The Solomon Exam Prep team is always on the lookout for how current developments affect the securities industry. For more updates from our Industry News blog, use the subscribe form on this page.

August Study Question of the Month

Submit your answer to info@solomonexamprep.com to be entered to win a $10 Starbucks gift card. Continue reading

Submit your answer to info@solomonexamprep.com to be entered to win a $10 Starbucks gift card.

Question

Relevant to the Series 6Series 7, Series 24, Series 26Series 62, Series 79Series 82, and Series 99.

 

 

 

 

 

Which of these records about your customer Doug is your firm required to retain for five years?
 
A. Doug’s customer ledger
B. A SAR you filed on Doug
C. A complaint Doug filed about you

D. A confirmation of one of Doug’s trades

Answer: B. The general tier of recordkeeping is three years, six years, and lifetime, although there are some records with retention periods of four or five years. Additionally, the firm must keep most records easily accessible for the first two years.

Customer ledgers fall in the six-year tier, Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) fall in the five-year tier, customer complaints fall in the four-year tier, and trade confirmations fall in the three-year tier.

Financial Exploitation of Vulnerable Adults: New Tools for Firms, Courtesy of FINRA

On February 5th, FINRA officially adopted a pair of new provisions designed to empower firms to identify and assist elderly and disabled customers who may be victims of financial exploitation. Continue reading

On February 5th, FINRA officially adopted a pair of new provisions designed to empower firms to identify and assist elderly and disabled customers who may be victims of financial exploitation. One amends the rules around collecting customer information, and the other lets a firm take action in response to unusual account activity.

These changes could soon show up on multiple exams, including the Series 6, 7, 24, 26, 27, 28, 65, 66, and of course the upcoming SIE exam.

The “Trusted Contact Person”

In your future career in securities, you may have an elderly or disabled customer who begins making decisions that don’t appear to be in his best interest. Maybe you can’t get ahold of him to ask about unusual transactions on his account. But if the transactions appear to be legally authorized by the customer, is there anything you can do about your suspicions?

Yes. These new rule changes help you help this customer in two ways. First, you’re more likely to have someone close to the customer who you can reach out to. From now on, when a firm collects or updates a customer’s personal information it must try to get the name and contact information of a trusted contact person. The firm has a limited ability to share information with the trusted contact person to address certain situations that may indicate that the customer is vulnerable.

For example, if the firm can’t contact the customer, it could ask the trusted contact person about her whereabouts. Depending on the situation, this could be as simple as confirming that the contact information you have for the customer is still accurate. If the firm reasonably suspects a more serious problem, it can also ask questions to help determine whether poor health may be interfering with the customer’s ability to protect her own interests. In this type of situation, the firm can also ask for information about any legal guardian or power of attorney the customer might have.

Temporary Protective Holds

The other new provision lets a member firm put a temporary hold on an account if there is a reasonable belief that an elderly or disabled customer is being exploited. This type of hold can be placed if the following conditions are met:

  • One of the individuals authorized to transact business on the account is:
    • At least 65 years of age
    • At least 18 years of age and has a mental or physical condition that keeps him from protecting his own interests
  • The member firm has a reasonable belief that the customer may be the victim of financial exploitation.
  • If the reasonable belief only applies to certain transactions (as opposed to all activity on the account), only those transactions should be blocked. Other account activity should continue to be allowed.

The member firm does not need definite knowledge of a specific, diagnosed disability, or any other kind of detailed medical information about the customer. The condition doesn’t even have to be permanent. A customer temporarily hospitalized for surgery could fit the definition, as long as there is reason to believe this is keeping her from being able to protect her own interests.

Financial exploitation is defined broadly for these purposes. Such exploitation can consist of “taking, withholding, appropriation, or use” of assets in the customer’s account, whether cash or securities. The reasonable belief can be in regard to past, present, or future exploitation. It can involve unusual actions that the customer supposedly took, or it can involve actions taken by someone else “through the use of a power of attorney, guardianship, or any other authority.” It can involve suspicion of intimidation, trickery, a combination of the two, or any other form of “undue influence” over the vulnerable person.

Required Follow-Up

When this kind of temporary hold is placed on an account, the firm must follow up in several ways. The firm has two business days to notify all parties authorized to transact business on the affected account, as well as the customer’s trusted contact person. If the firm has a reasonable belief that an individual is involved in the exploitation, that individual is excluded from the notification requirement, even if it is the trusted contact person. The notification must disclose the temporary hold and the reason for it.

Another way that the firm must follow up is with an internal review of what the reasonable belief of exploitation was based on. This review must be opened as soon as the hold is placed. It is important that the review be completed promptly, because it may affect the length of the hold.

Initially, the temporary hold may be placed for up to 15 business days. The firm is allowed to grant an extension of up to 10 more business days, but only if the internal review is completed and finds that the belief was in fact reasonable. (On the other hand, if the internal review finds that the belief was not reasonable, the hold would likely be ended immediately.)

The member firm can extend the hold further if a court or state agency (such as Adult Protective Services) orders or requests it. A request from a state agency need not be formal. It could be as simple as the agency asking for an extended hold to give them more time to investigate. Such a request should be carefully documented so that the firm can show that the extension is allowed.

Each member firm must have written procedures specifying who within the firm is authorized to place, remove, or extend this kind of hold. Only an associated person whose job function is supervisory, legal, or compliance-related can be authorized to place this kind of hold. All records related to such a hold must be retained for the default period of six years.

Continue to rely on Solomon Exam Prep for up-to-date information of interest to takers of the Series 6, 7, 24, 26, 27, 28, 65, 66, SIE, and other securities exams.

 

It’s Settled: SEC Shortens Regular-Way to T+2

If you’ve ever traded securities or studied for a securities licensing exam, then you’ve probably come across T+3. No, it’s not an herbal supplement or an embarrassing medical procedure. Continue reading

If you’ve ever traded securities or studied for a securities licensing exam, then you’ve probably come across T+3. No, it’s not an herbal supplement or an embarrassing medical procedure. T+3 refers to the regular-way settlement period for most securities transactions. This means that securities must be paid for and delivered by three business days from the trade date. T+3 also means you don’t become the owner of record of a security until three business days after you purchase it.

Well, add T+3 to the list of things that have gone out of style. Effective May 30, 2017, the SEC will shorten the regular-way settlement period to two business days. And so will begin the age of T+2, which is intended to “increase efficiency and reduce risk for market participants,” according to SEC Acting Chairman Michael Pinowar.

This shorter settlement period for the trading of secondary market securities has been discussed by the SEC for years. The change is expected to lower margin requirements for clearing agency members, reduce liquidity stress when markets are volatile, and harmonize settlement with European markets, which moved to T+2 in 2014.

This settlement period will not apply to every securities transaction, though. T+2, like T+3 before it, will apply to:

  • Stocks
  • Bonds
  • Municipal securities
  • Exchange-traded funds
  • Mutual funds traded through a brokerage firm
  • Unit investment trusts
  • Limited partnerships that trade on an exchange

The securities industry moves fast. Don’t get left behind! Visit www.solomonexamprep.com or call us at 503-601-0212 for more information about the latest securities exam preparation and education.

Solomon has helped thousands pass their Series 6, Series 7, Series 24, Series 26, Series 27, Series 28, Series 50, Series 51, Series 52, Series 53, Series 62, Series 63, Series 65, Series 66, Series 79, Series 82, and Series 99.