Westlaw Publishes Akin Gump Article on Social Media Compliance for Investment Advisers
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Westlaw has published the article “Social media compliance for investment advisers,” written by Akin Gump litigation partner Peter Altman, corporate associate Sandra Lewitz and litigation associate Kelly Handschumacher.
The article offers some guidance on how investment advisers can best stay clear of any regulatory scrutiny of their social media activity. The SEC, it says, “has substantial surveillance tools” at its discretion, given that it sees social media “as an area replete with risk for registered investment advisers.”
The authors then underscore the obligations of investment advisers “under the advertising, books and records, and compliance rules of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940” and highlight several recent enforcement actions as examples. They also note that, in addition to advertising and recordkeeping requirements, “advisers should keep in mind that social media usage could implicate other Advisers Act provisions and rules, including fiduciary and cybersecurity obligations.”
In light of the evolving nature of social media and the SEC’s increased interest in this area, Altman, Lewitz and Handschumacher conclude by suggesting that advisers “should stay up to date on the regulatory risks for the social media sites that they and their personnel use, as well as on further guidance from the agency.”
To read the full article, please click here.
