The end of the year is a busy time for investment advisors. In addition to caring for clients and undertaking your own strategic planning, you must carve out time for compliance.

In its November 2020 Risk Alert, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) outlined concerns about IA compliance. OCIE staff noted that many firms do not emphasize documenting annual reviews and expressed worries about the lack of dedicated resources allocated to compliance activities.

The SEC holds firms to a high standard, and rightly so. But fortunately, you do not have to go it alone. A combination of outside expert advice and compliance management technology solutions can ensure you meet all of the SEC’s compliance standards with relative ease.

Here are the six areas you should focus on before the end of the year and how the pairing of a consultant team and technology solution can deliver the results you need.

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We are nearly half-way through December. Do you and your team seem more ‘tired’ that usual? It is likely you do!  Under normal circumstances stress levels tend to rise this time of year, but since so many have experienced higher than normal levels of stress since March, by now we are all simply maxed out.

Help yourself and your team avoid total burnout and better balance stressors with these tips from a recent ThinkAdvisor article.

And remember, while there are many tasks one must complete to remain compliant, you can make it easier and less *stressful* with the proper technology framework. Take a look at how BasisCode can help and help yourself to a hot cocoa break!

[Visit Source: ThinkAdvisor]

Year-end is upon us and finding ways to say ‘thanks’ to our clients and partners can be challenging. Given traditional compliance requirements, now coupled with the effects of a global pandemic, many are scratching their heads on just how to show their gratitude. Fear not, a recent ThinkAdvisor article offers a top 10 list of holiday gift ideas, each under $100.

Not sure what you can spend this year? With the BasisCode Compliance suite, compliance teams can easily establish firm limits and employees can easily pre-check activities to ensure they do not violate firm policies – before they use their corporate cards. Additionally, the BasisCode mobile app makes it easy to expense items on the go. Happy gifting!

[View Source Article: ThinkAdvisor]

In a recent ThinkAdvisor article, Melanie Waddell shared insights into the SEC’s abilities to keep up with examinations despite the global pandemic, reaching a 15% exam rate across RIAs, conducting more than 2,950 examinations in 2020. The switch to a remote based exam program likely poised the SEC to maintain their exam cadence, and it should caution advisors to not become complacent when it comes to compliance.

Advisors who were subject to complying with Form CRS found themselves subject to OCIE’s undisrupted exam initiatives and all advisors examined found themselves showcasing their Business Continuity Plans. Interestingly, a small percentage of reviewed firms had previously established pandemic specific plans, even in advance of Coronavirus.

As firm’s continue with their annual planning, risk assessment and annual review cycles, this article reinforces the need to remain diligent, and offers some insight into considerations firms may apply towards measuring their risk profiles and testing changes applied to their business continuity plans. Furthermore, in a remote based exam environment, the ability to produce complete and accurate documentation in a timely fashion may affect the first impression given during a regulatory exam more than ever.

Using a fully integrated compliance technology platform supports a firm’s ability to maintain continuity in its compliance program’s implementation, execution of tasks, documentation of evidence, and perhaps most importantly, audit ready exports.

[View Source Article: ThinkAdvisor]

In a recent SEC Examination initiative, OCIE conducted a series of examinations this year of Investment Advisers with multiple branch office locations. Their recent risk alert outlined the most common deficiencies observed during this sweep which included failures related to compliance and supervision and processes related to investment advice.

During the examinations OCIE cites many of the compliance and supervision issues noted stem from policies and procedures that were inaccurate, not consistently applied, inadequately implemented, or simply not enforced. Key program areas noted included Custody of Client Assets, Fees and Expenses, Oversight and Supervision, Advertising and the perennial issues surrounding Code of Ethics.

As firm’s embark once again on their annual planning, risk assessment and annual review cycles, this alert should serve as a guidepost to navigate areas of focus for the SEC and common pitfalls. Not surprisingly, lack of documentation, process, and an inability to produce records contributed to the observed compliance failures.

All of those issues can be remediated with proper policy design and program implementation using a fully integrated compliance technology platform.

Ask Us How BasisCode Can Help…

With Form CRS & Regulation Best Interest

The SEC recently issued Risk Alerts on OCIE’s Form CRS & Regulation Best Interest Exam Focuses. Meeting these compliance dates has taken center stage for many financial services firms and with good reason.

As firms continue to assess the immediate and long-term changes needed to support these new requirements, the BasisCode Compliance platform is well designed to support your firm’s agile response and procedural updates.

So, what are the Top 3 ways BasisCode can help?

1. Delivery

Utilizing the Certifications module of BasisCode, firm Officers can assemble firm specific distribution lists to prepare and deliver their firm’s Form CRS to the appropriate clients.

2. Communications & Training

Utilizing a combination of our Testing, Certifications and Document Library features, Officers will be able to fully implement, communicate, and train their staff on changes to their compliance procedures as a result of these new requirements.

3. On-Going Management of Conflicts of Interest

Managing broker conflicts has been noted as a FINRA exam focus area for Broker-Dealers. The BasisCode Certifications and Forms Studio will allow firms to model their on-going processes to support initial capture and, scheduled or ad-hoc, requests for updates to conflicts of interest across the organization, be it at the broker level or product level.

The scalable nature of the BasisCode Compliance suite has been designed to enable compliance teams to rapidly design and deploy new or modifications to their compliance programs to maintain strong cultures of compliance and adapt to regulatory change.

This coupled with our hallmark, audit-ready reporting capabilities, will provide confidence in preparing for future regulatory examinations. Schedule a demo today to learn more about how we can help.

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Updating Security Practices

Best Practices for a WFH Environment

Based on Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP’s recent article “Potential Regulatory Scrutiny Of COVID-19 Remote Work Cybersecurity Risks”, and as more organizations shift to a remote based workforce, we agree that there is a heightened need to stay vigilant in addressing cybersecurity risks and cyberattack threats related to new remote working environments – and it’s clear that the regulators expect the same.
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By Carlos Guillen, President & CEO BasisCode Compliance

If you’re a compliance officer making New Year’s resolutions, here’s one to add to the top of your list.  Make better use of technology to track and disclose employee gift giving and entertainment (G&E) activity.  Software makes it easier for staff and supervisors to align G&E management with a company’s compliance policies and procedures (P&Ps).  As recent history shows, firms that fail to do so may pay a steep price long after the confetti and compliance cases settle.  (more…)