Form ADV Part 3 Items

Form ADV Part 3 Items

Under rule 17a-14 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and rule 204-5 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, broker-dealers registered under section 15 of the Exchange Act and investment advisers registered under section 203 of the Advisers Act are required to deliver to retail investors a relationship summary, Form ADV Part 3, disclosing certain information about the firm. Read all the General Instructions as well as the particular item requirements before preparing or updating the relationship summary.

Read More…

Share Class Selection

Share Class Selection

Advisers have a fiduciary obligation to recommend a share class that will provide their clients with the lowest overall expenses, based on anticipated transaction costs and holding periods. Moreover, if the Firm recommends mutual funds that carry 12b-1 fees when lower share class options exist, the Firm must make full and fair disclosure, including conflicts associated with making investment decisions in light of the receipt of 12b-1 fees; and selecting the more expensive 12b-1 fee paying share class when a lower-cost share class is available for the same fund. Share class selection is a regulatory priority. The SEC has indicated that examiners will conduct focused, risk-based examinations to assess whether investment advisers are meeting their obligations to

  1. Seek best execution;
  2. Disclose material conflicts of interest; and
  3. Maintain an effective compliance program.

Investment adviser should determine its approach for meeting these three obligations and train its personnel to comply with any policies, procedures, and guidelines governing share class selection.

Read More…

Updating the Brochure

Timely Updating the Brochure

Part 2A of the Form ADV requires advisers to create narrative brochures containing information about the advisory firm. Both federal and state registered advisers must prepare and deliver a brochure to their clients. They both also have requirements set by the SEC and NASAA for timely updating their brochure

Read More…

Part 2A of Form ADV: Firm Brochure

Part 2A of Form ADV: Firm Brochure

Rule 204-3, the brochure rule, is a requirement under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 that requires investment advisers to provide a written disclosure statement to their clients. The rule applies to all federally registered investment advisers and specifies times during the advisory process at which they must provide the materials. To satisfy this rule, adviser can either provide clients Part 2 of the Form ADV, or they can provide an actual brochure that contains the same information that would be found in Form ADV Part 2A and 2B.

Part 2 of the Form ADV consists of:

  • Form ADV Part 2A: Firm Brochure
  • Part 2A Appendix 1 of Form ADV: Wrap Fee Program Brochure
  • Form ADV Part 2B: Brochure Supplement describing certain supervised persons.

This blog will cover Part 2A of Form ADV: Firm Brochure, for more information on Form ADV, check out our Form ADV blog now, or our Part 2A Appendix 1 of Form ADV: Wrap Fee Program Brochure and Part 2A of Form ADV: Firm Brochure blogs being posted soon.

Read More…

Top 6

Our Top Six Most Popular Blog Posts

MasterCompliance continues to provide clients and the public with guidance on industry focus areas, new rules, compliance foundations, and regulatory priorities. This blog explores our top six most popular blog posts.

Read More…

How to Register as an RIA: Rule 203 A-2(c)

As you may remember from our earlier blogs on registered investment advisers (RIAs), whether a firm should be registered as an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or with a state is typically determined by the amount of regulatory assets the firm has that receive continuous and regular supervision or management (collectively known as a firm’s “regulatory assets under management” or “regulatory AUM”); with some exceptions, firms that have over $100 million of regulatory AUM must register with the SEC, while smaller advisers must register with state securities authorities instead. But, what if a new investment adviser doesn’t currently have over $100 million of regulatory AUM, but expects to soon? Is the firm required to wait until it has over $100 million of regulatory AUM to register with the SEC?

Read More…