State Regulators Believe That Advisors Are Failing to Protect Against Elderly Financial Abuse

Posted on September 29th, 2021 at 4:16 PM
State Regulators Believe That Advisors Are Failing to Protect Against Elderly Financial Abuse

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law: 

According to a survey conducted by state regulators, numerous investment advisors fail to utilize internal systems to flag financial abuse of elderly clients. 

The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) conducted an exam sweep earlier this year. The sweep indicated that 58.5% of advisors have no policies in place to handle elderly financial abuse, 23.5% of advisors fail to provide adequate training to advisory personnel, and 17.7% lacked sufficient supervision. NASAA conducted 1,206 examinations of 289 investment advisors. 

NASAA released a model act in 2016, which aimed to protect elderly clients from financial abuse. The act, which has been adopted in 32 states, requires mandatory reporting of potential abuse and creates a safe harbor for advisors to protect accounts of clients who may be victims. According to NASAA, the exam sweep indicated that advisory firms’ top five deficiencies were registration (44%), books and records (41.7%), contracts (30.5%), supervision and compliance (29.5%) and advertising (19.7%). The exam sweep typically is completed every two years and regulators additionally noted that deficiencies with cybersecurity compliance dropped to 5.3% compared to 26% in 2019. 

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

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, financial abuse

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

I have the best legal firm in the country to defend me. Awesome job!

Cindy C.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

April 25, 2024
B. Riley Financial Clears Air Amid Allegations, Stock Surges

Amidst swirling speculation regarding its connections with a client linked to the Prophecy Asset Management collapse, B. Riley Financial Inc. has conducted an internal
review, concluding no affiliations with the defunct hedge fund.

April 24, 2024
RIA Insurance Claims Skyrocket

A recent analysis by Golsan Scruggs reveals a staggering 231 percent increase in errors-and-omissions (E&O) liability claims among registered investment advisor (RIA)
insurers.

April 23, 2024
Surge Predicted in Regulation Best Interest Cases

According to a recent analysis, Reg BI-related actions quickly have ascended to the top five issues for FINRA, with fines totaling $6 million in 2023.