Finra issues additional guidance on social media

George Smaragdis, director of media relations at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority told me two weeks ago to expect some additional guidance on social media soon and sure enough here it is in the form of Regulatory Notice 11-39. The new document, entitled “Social Media Websites and the Use of Personal Devices for Business Communications; Guidance on Social Networking Websites and Business Communications,” is eight pages and full of additional links to other documents and information resources, including the last official Finra notice on the subject, 10-06, which came out in January 2010. Topics including recordkeeping, supervision, links to third-party sites and use of data feeds are detailed in a Q&A format. The rationale behind this new document is summed up pretty well in the Executive Summary: "Since its publication, firms have raised additional questions regarding the application of the rules. This Notice responds to these questions by providing further clarification concerning application of the rules to new technologies. It is not intended to alter the principles or the guidance provided in Regulatory Notice 10-06." Link to the document: Regulatory Notice 11-39 Related stories: Finra unveils guidelines for social media and blogging (Jan 25 2010) Erado lands another big independent broker-dealer; Control of Google+ still a big question mark; Advisor Group went a different route Actiance to launch Socialite Engage; A measuring stick for social media efforts in addition to pre-approval, tracking and archiving