Financial Services CRM
SEC Rule 17a-4
A regulation requiring broker-dealers to retain records in a non-rewriteable, non-erasable format for specified periods.
Complete Definition
SEC Rule 17a-4 is a Securities and Exchange Commission regulation that mandates broker-dealers preserve records in a Write-Once, Read-Many (WORM) format for specified retention periods. For CRM systems, this means all communications, transactions, and client interactions must be stored in a tamper-proof archive. Compliance solutions like Smarsh, Global Relay, or Actiance are typically used to meet this requirement.
Key Points
- 1Applies to broker-dealers, not RIAs (though RIAs have similar requirements)
- 2Requires WORM (Write-Once, Read-Many) storage
- 3Retention periods vary by record type (3-6 years typical)
- 4Includes email, instant messages, and social media
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