Financial advisors, wealth and investment firms: the numbers, the rules, the AI picture.

• SEC Marketing Rule: general prohibitions (Investment Advisers Act Rule 206(4)-1)

  The SEC adopted the rule on December 22, 2020, replacing the old advertising and cash solicitation rules. It applies to advisers registered or required to be registered with the SEC. An advertisement may not contain untrue or misleading statements, unsubstantiated material claims, misleading implications, or benefits without fair treatment of the risks.

  What it means: Your website, blog, social posts, emails to prospects and videos can all be advertisements. Every material claim needs support you can produce, such as 'we serve physicians' or 'we have over 20 years of experience'. Keep a copy of every advertisement, and review pages before they go live, not after.

  [6] sec.gov

• SEC Marketing Rule: testimonials and endorsements

  The rule allows testimonials and endorsements with conditions. The ad must clearly and prominently disclose whether the person is a client and whether they are paid, plus conflicts. The adviser must oversee compliance and generally have a written agreement with paid promoters. Compensation of $1,000 or less in the preceding twelve months is the de minimis threshold for the written agreement, and certain disqualified 'bad actors' cannot be paid promoters. The SEC's Division of Examinations issued a December 16, 2025 risk alert on disclosure and oversight.

  What it means: Client quotes on your site, case-study quotes, 'refer a friend' gifts and paid review programs are all in scope. Put the disclosures beside the quote, not behind a link, and use the same size and prominence. Do not pay clients for reviews, and review each referral arrangement with counsel before you launch it.

  [5] sec.gov

• SEC Marketing Rule: third-party ratings, performance and staff FAQs

  Third-party ratings are allowed only with disclosures and criteria on how the rating was prepared. Gross performance may appear only with net performance, results must generally cover specific time periods, and hypothetical performance needs policies and underlying information. The SEC staff's Marketing Compliance FAQ was last updated January 15, 2026. It covers extracted performance, portfolio characteristics, model fees and gross and net calculations.

  What it means: 'Top advisor' badges, 'five-star' listings and awards pages need the rating date, the period, who produced the rating and whether you paid. Returns charts need gross and net figures on the same basis. For most owner-run planning firms, the safest policy is no performance figures on the website at all.

  [7] sec.gov

• FINRA Rule 2210 and Regulatory Notice 17-18 (broker-dealers and their representatives)

  Rule 2210 covers communications with the public by FINRA members. Content must be fair and balanced, must not omit material facts, and may not make false, exaggerated or promissory statements or predict performance. A registered principal must approve retail communications, sent to more than 25 retail investors in 30 days, before use. Regulatory Notice 17-18 (April 25, 2017) applies the rules to social media, text messaging, hyperlinks and testimonials. Liking or sharing a favorable third-party comment can count as adopting it.

  What it means: If you or your team hold a broker-dealer registration, your firm's compliance department approves content, and your own posts are covered. Do not repost client praise or 'like' reviews without checking, and archive texts and chat that discuss business. Testimonials about investment advice need the disclosures the rule lists.

  [3] finra.org

• CFP Board rules for the CFP marks

  Only certificants who meet CFP Board requirements may use the CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® and related marks. Use capital letters and the ® symbol, pair the mark with an approved noun such as professional or certificant, and never write one mark as a parenthetical of the other. The marks may not appear in domain names, URLs or email addresses. CFP Board requires its legal tagline on materials that use the marks.

  What it means: Check every bio, header, footer, email signature and domain. A firm named 'CFP' something, an email address with the mark, or 'CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP)' in a bio is a common error. The tagline belongs on the footer of the site that uses the marks.

  [8] cfp.net

• FTC Endorsement Guides and the Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule

  The FTC says a material connection between an endorser and the marketer, such as payment, free goods or a discount, must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously, and advertisers answer for what others do on their behalf. In August 2024 the FTC announced a final rule banning fake reviews, buying positive reviews, undisclosed insider reviews and review suppression, with civil penalties for knowing violations.

  What it means: Never write your own reviews, ask staff or family to post them without disclosure, pay for reviews or threaten reviewers. For influencer or referral partners, require a disclosure and monitor posts. These FTC rules apply on top of the SEC and FINRA rules, not instead of them.

  [9] ftc.gov

• United Kingdom: FCA financial promotions

  In the UK, financial promotions must be fair, clear and not misleading on every channel, social media included. The FCA's finalised guidance FG24/1 was published on March 26, 2024. It also warns that unauthorised people, such as influencers, who promote regulated products without approval from an FCA-authorised person may commit a criminal offence.

  What it means: UK advisers cannot copy a US page. Risk balance, approval of promotions and influencer arrangements follow FCA rules, and the SEC Marketing Rule does not apply. Use a UK compliance consultant for any UK promotion.

  [10] fca.org.uk

• Canada: CIRO and provincial securities regulators

  In Canada, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) regulates social media as part of its oversight of advertisements, sales literature and correspondence. It requires dealers to keep sound policies and adequate supervision of advisors' business use of social media. Advisors who are not dealer-registered answer to their provincial securities commission.

  What it means: A Canadian advisor posts under the dealer or firm that supervises them, with approvals before posting. Do not reuse US testimonial or performance practices without checking CIRO and provincial rules, because they differ.

  [11] advisor.ca

This is general information, not legal or compliance advice. Rules differ by registration type, state or province and country, and they change. Confirm every page, post and ad with your compliance officer or counsel and your own regulator before publishing.