Blogs

Choosing the best CRM for financial advisors also means checking what happens after a meeting ends: who receives the follow-up task, where communications are preserved, and whether connected systems receive the correct update. Those details deserve as much attention as the contact screen.

Microsoft SharePoint is your strongest starting point if your RIA already uses Microsoft 365 and needs document libraries with version history, metadata, and managed access permissions.

An RIA's compliance obligations come primarily from the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, SEC rules under that Act, and — for state-registered firms — the Uniform Securities Act as adopted by each state, with additional cybersecurity, recordkeeping, and marketing requirements layered on top.

For most RIAs, the choice between EDR and MDR comes down to one practical question: does your firm have people ready to act on a threat alert at 2 a.m. on a Sunday, or do you need a team that already does? Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is software that watches your laptops, servers, and workstations for suspicious activity. Managed Detection and Response (MDR) adds trained analysts who monitor that software around the clock, investigate what it finds, and respond befo

Every RIA examiner request starts the same way: produce the emails. Choosing between Smarsh, Global Relay, and Microsoft for compliance email archiving comes down to how much retrieval, supervision, and eDiscovery work you want your archive to handle on its own versus how much your compliance team will manage manually.

The challenge in 2026 is knowing exactly what "real" means when Regulation S-P has changed, examiners have sharpened their questions, and most template policies were written before either happened.

The RIA industry has grown dramatically over the past decade. SEC data shows 15,441 registered advisory firms in 2023, up 35% from 2009, while regulatory assets under management climbed from $39.4 trillion to $128.8 trillion.

Microsoft 365 security hardening for financial firms in 2026. Identity, email, data protection, endpoint, and compliance configurations for FINRA and SEC.

Complete SEC Rule 17a-4 compliance guide for broker-dealers in 2026. Covers WORM, the 2023 electronic recordkeeping amendments, retention, and audit trail requirements.