The SEC’s Recent Revisions to Form ADV and the Recordkeeping Rule: What Investment Advisers Need to Know About Retaining Performance Records and Disclosing Social Media Use, Office Locations and Assets Under Management (Part Two of Two)

On August 25, 2016, the SEC adopted much-anticipated amendments to Form ADV, Part 1A and to Rule 204-2 (recordkeeping rule) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. These amendments further the SEC’s agenda to gather more information about its registrant base to inform the agency’s risk-based approach to adviser examinations. See “OCIE Director Marc Wyatt Details Use of Technology and Coordination With Other Agencies to Execute OCIE’s Four-Pillar Mission” (Nov. 3, 2016). In a two-part guest series, Michael F. Mavrides and Anthony M. Drenzek, partner and special regulatory counsel, respectively, at Proskauer Rose, review the amendments to Form ADV and the recordkeeping rule and provide practical guidance to SEC-registered investment advisers on the steps to take prior to the compliance date to ensure their firms are prepared to comply with the amended rules. This second article in the series discusses the new disclosure requirements relating to an adviser’s use of social media; office locations; the amount of an adviser’s proprietary assets and assets under management; the sale of 3(c)(1) fund interests to qualified clients; and the recordkeeping requirements regarding performance claims in communications that are distributed to any person. The first article reviewed the detailed disclosures that advisers will be required to provide with respect to managed account clients and the firm’s chief compliance officer, as well as factors to consider when pursuing an umbrella registration. For additional commentary from Proskauer partners, see “Swiss Hedge Fund Marketing Regulations, BEA Forms and Form ADV Updates: An Interview With Proskauer Partner Robert Leonard” (Mar. 5, 2015); and “Proskauer Partner Christopher Wells Discusses Challenges and Concerns in Negotiating and Administering Side Letters” (Feb. 1, 2013). For more on Form ADV, see “How Can Hedge Fund Managers Rebut the Presumption of Materiality of Certain Disciplinary Events in Form ADV, Part 2?” (Jan. 5, 2012); and “Recent SEC Enforcement Action Demonstrates the SEC’s Focus on the Accuracy and Consistency of Disclosures by Hedge Fund Managers in Form ADV” (Jan. 5, 2012).

To read the full article

Continue reading your article with a HFLR subscription.