Most Common Investment Adviser Violations
Six investment adviser violations make up roughly 60% of all deficiencies the SEC's staff find when they investigate adviser offices, according to Renee Esfandiary, assistant director of the SEC's Office of Compliance, Inspections and Examinations. The investment adviser violations include: Compliance Rule Violations include not have written policies and procedures to ensure firm operations adhere to all adviser regulations, not following the firm’s own policies and procedures, or not having a chief compliance officer responsible for administering them. Disclosure Violations can occur when advisers fail to update their registration form ADV timely, file it with incorrect information, or do not provide clients or prospective clients with certain information at required times. Fiduciary Duty Investment adviser violations occur a when an adviser fails to act in a client's best interest, such as using client assets for an adviser’s own benefit or for the benefit of another client. This can constitute fraud. Part of this responsibility requires advisers to disclose any conflicts of interest. [...]