Tr?id=566623520170033&ev=PageView&noscript=1

SEC Probes Financial Advisory Firms’ Use of WhatsApp and Other Messaging Platforms

Posted on October 27th, 2022 at 2:51 PM
SEC Probes Financial Advisory Firms’ Use of WhatsApp and Other Messaging Platforms

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investing whether financial advisory firms used WhatsApp or other outside messaging platforms to communicate with clients.

The SEC has recently sent letters to several financial advisory firms inquiring into their record-keeping and employees’ communication practices, according to sources familiar with the matter. Specifically, the SEC is requesting information as to which devices and apps firms permit for official communications as well as whether the firms are adequately preserving electronic records of communications on those platforms.

Financial advisory firms are required to regularly monitor business communications in order to flag improper conduct, and compliance with this rule has already become more difficult as numerous employees continue to work remotely. The SEC has already fined J.P. Morgan, Bank of America, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs a combined $2 billion due to allegations that some of their employees utilized improper platforms to conduct business.

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities, employment, regulatory and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, advisors, law, sec

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next
Quotes Bigger

I am so blessed to have you and your dynamic team defending me. Your ethics, forward thinking and strategies are amazing.  You guys are the best group of attorneys in the country that I could hire to handle this complicated case.

Cindy C.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

1793034027 Law
October 26, 2026
FINRA Bars Former Wedbush Broker Over $3.5 Million in Complex ETP Losses

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) barred former Wedbush Securities broker William H.

1792610544 Law
October 21, 2026
FINRA Fines and Suspends Former LPL Broker Over Undisclosed Customer Settlement

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) fined former LPL Financial broker Gregory W.

1792523173 Law
October 20, 2026
FINRA Orders American Portfolios to Pay $1.6 Million Over Unit Investment Trust Supervision Failures

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has ordered American Portfolios, the broker-dealer later absorbed into Osaic, to pay more than $1.6 million in restitution and fines over failures to supervise financial advisors who repeatedly recommended that customers sell unit investment trusts (UITs) before maturity.