Chatting with Alpaca: Unlocking the Challenges of Compliance
Have you ever wondered why compliance can be so challenging at your company? Genay Glasgo explains to us why it is important to abide by compliance guidelines and what are the consequences for not following them.
Have you ever wondered why compliance can be so challenging at your company? Genay Glasgo explains to us why it is important to abide by compliance guidelines and what are the consequences for not following them.
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Transcript:
Mariangela: Hi, everyone. I'm Mariangela Martinez, Content Marketing Specialist for Alpaca. And today we're doing another series of Chatting with Alpaca and this time it is about compliance. We have our Chief Compliance Officer, Genay Glasgo.
Genay: Hi, everyone. It's great to be here.
Mariangela: Thanks, Genay, for joining. So our first question is why is compliance so important and why all companies should have compliance officers?
Genay: The primary goals with the compliance team within a US broker dealer are to ensure that the firm follows all the relevant regulatory rules. It also reduces risks to the firm and costs and we also look to protect investors and look out for their best interests. The chief compliance officer, which is my role, is responsible for making sure the organization follows all those relevant regulations both domestically in the US and globally, while also trying to make sure we avoid any issues that could cause the firm fines or any reputational damage to the firm.
Mariangela: Ok. And why do we have to be so careful with social media and what we post or companies in general post?
Genay: In general, communication guidelines within the financial services industry look to go along with those same goals I mentioned for compliance primarily. Again, we're looking to protect investors and we also want to follow the necessary regulations. So social media and advertising content needs to be fair and balanced, which means any time we're listing benefits, we also must identify those risks. Again, trying to protect the investors and clients we work for. Alpaca securities as a US broker dealer and as a clearing firm does not provide investment advice. Therefore, we need to avoid using any promissory language that a client might construe as investment advice. So that's very important whenever we're posting or advertising on social media or any other public forum.
Mariangela: Ok. And what are some repercussions of not following these requirements?
Genay: If a US broker dealer is found to not follow any of the regulations, they could be subject to fines or other legal ramifications up to and including jail time in some cases for the parties involved or they could even be barred from the industry in extreme cases. Not to mention obviously, there's reputational damage that would be involved as well. Those are extreme cases, but you know, there's always fines which are, which are not desirable and any reputational damage is obviously look to be avoided.
Mariangela: Ok. Awesome. Thank you so much for all the information. I know many companies struggle following, you know, compliance requirements. That's why we have you to guide us. So, thank you so much and thank you for all the information you provided.
Genay: Sure, happy to be here and happy to answer any other questions anyone might have.
Mariangela: Yes. Hope this helped for everyone. If you have questions, comment below and we'll answer. Thanks everyone.
Genay: Thanks so much.
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Brokerage services are provided by Alpaca Securities LLC ("Alpaca Securities"), member FINRA/SIPC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlpacaDB, Inc. Technology and services are offered by AlpacaDB, Inc.
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