Investor Assistance (800) 732-0330 www.investor.gov

SEC-NASAA INvEStor BullEtIN

Making Sense of Financial 

Professional titles

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Office of 

Investor Education and Advocacy and the North American 

Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) are jointly 

issuing this Investor Bulletin to help investors better understand 

the titles used by financial professionals. The requirements for 

obtaining and using these titles vary widely, from rigorous to 

nothing at all. To use certain titles, a financial professional 

may need to pass exams, meet ethical standards, have relevant 

work experience, and undertake continuing education. Other 

titles, however, may be obtained with little time, effort, and 

experience. 

Neither the SEC nor NASAA endorses any financial 

professional titles. We encourage you to look beyond a 

financial professional’s title to determine whether he or she can 

provide the type of financial services or products you need.

Registration or Licensing Status 

of Financial Professionals

Financial professional titles and licenses are not the 

same. A financial professional may use various titles 

whether or not he or she is registered or licensed with a 

regulatory authority. Financial professionals that are 

registered as a broker-dealer or investment adviser have 

obtained registrations and licenses granted by federal or 

state regulatory authorities. Working with a financial 

professional who is registered with or licensed by federal or 

state authorities affords you certain legal protections. 

The same financial professional may register in more than 

one capacity. For example, many financial professionals 

register as both a registered representative with a brokerdealer firm and an investment adviser. Also, a financial 

professional selling some insurance products, such as 

variable annuities, may be regulated as both a registered 

representative of a broker-dealer and an insurance agent. 

Insurance agents are subject to state insurance laws and are 

regulated by state insurance regulators.

Use of Titles by Financial Professionals 

Do not rely solely on a title to determine whether a 

financial professional has the expertise that you need—

find out what the title means and what the financial 

professional did to obtain it. 

Some titles are granted by private organizations, such as 

a trade group. While some private groups that grant titles 

may provide a method for you to complain about one of 

their members and can discipline a member for misconduct, there are other groups that do not take complaints or 

discipline their members. 
Investor Assistance (800) 732-0330 www.investor.gov

2

Still other titles may be simply purchased, or even made 

up by financial professionals hoping to imply that they 

have certain expertise or qualifications; such titles are 

generally marketing tools and are not granted by a 

regulator. As with any title, you should verify a financial 

professional is really qualified to advise you. See “How to 

Check on the Financial Professional’s Title” below for more 

information. 

How to Check on the Financial 

Professional’s Title

If a financial professional tells you that he or she has a 

certain professional title ask questions. Some questions 

you can ask include:

n Who awarded your title? 

n What are the training, ethical, and other requirements 

to receive the title? 

n Did you have to take a course and pass a test? 

n Does the designation require a certain level of work 

experience or education? 

n to maintain the designation, are you required to take 

refresher courses?

n How can I verify your standing with this organization?

Investment advisers are required to provide to their customers a brochure about their employees. If an employee 

lists a professional title, the brochure supplement must 

include an explanation of the minimum qualifications 

required for this professional title.

You may also learn about financial professional titles 

online at the Financial Industry regulatory Authority’s 

(FINrA) website page, “understanding Investment 

Professional Designations” available at: http://apps.finra.

org/DataDirectory/1/prodesignations.aspx. This website 

provides information such as: 

n A description of the education and experience requirements for certain titles; and

Information about the organizations granting certain 

titles, including information about continuing education requirements, public disciplinary or investor 

complaint processes, if any, and tools to check the 

status of a financial professional. 

n 

like the SEC and state securities regulators (NASAA), 

FINrA does Not grant, approve or endorse any professional designation. 

Professional organizations also may offer information 

online about the titles that they grant. In some cases, the 

granting organization’s website may allow you to verify 

that a person has earned a certain title. For example, 

the website of the Certified Financial Planner Board of 

Standards (www.cfp.net) allows visitors to search for CFP 

professionals to verify CFP certification.

Even after checking, it may not be clear to you whether 

a title represents relevant expertise, a marketing tool, or 

something else. That’s why you should always check the 

financial professional’s background, rather than relying 

solely on the professional’s title. 

to do your own online research about a broker’s or investment adviser’s professional qualifications, experience, 

education, and any disciplinary history, visit: 

n The SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure 

website at: www.adviserinfo.sec.gov, or 

BrokerCheck, a FINrA website at: www.finra.org/

Investors/toolsCalculators/BrokerCheck/. 

Your state’s securities regulator can also provide all 

of this information to you and help you understand 

how to interpret the information. to find your state’s 

securities regulator, go to the NASAA website at www.

nasaa.org/about-us/contact-us/contact-your-regulator/. 

n 

n 
Investor Assistance (800) 732-0330 www.investor.gov

3

Key Questions You Should Consider Asking a Financial Professional 

About Financial Professional Titles

General questions 

✓ Are you employed by a registered broker-dealer? If yes, use FINRA’s BrokerCheck website, 

available at www.finra.org/Investors/ToolsCalculators/BrokerCheck, to find out about the 

financial professional’s qualifications, experience, education, and disciplinary history.

✓ Are you employed by a registered investment adviser? If yes, are you registered with a state 

securities regulator or the SEC? If the financial professional is registered with the SEC, use the 

SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure website, available at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov, to 

find out about the financial professional’s registrations, qualifications, experience, education, 

and disciplinary history. 

✓ Are you or your firm registered with a state securities regulator? If so, contact that regulator to 

find out where you can find out about the financial professional’s registrations, qualifications, 

experience, education, and disciplinary history. A list of state securities regulators is available on 

the North American Securities Administrators Association website at http://www.nasaa.org/

about-us/contact-us/contact-your-regulator/.

✓ Are you or your firm registered with any other state or federal regulator? If so, contact that 

regulator to find out about the financial professional’s registrations, qualifications, experience, 

education, and disciplinary history.

Questions regarding specific financial professional titles

✓ What is the name of the organization that awards the financial professional title? 

✓ What are the training, ethical, and other requirements to receive the financial professional title?

✓ Did you have to take a course and take a test?

✓ Does the financial professional title require a certain level of work or educational experience?

✓ To maintain the financial professional title, are you required to attend periodic continuing 

education courses?

✓ Confirm any information the financial professional provides you regarding his or her financial 

professional title. This information may be available on the website of the organization that 

awards the financial professional title, or you may also check FINRA’s website page “Understanding Investment Professional Designations” available at http://apps.finra.org/DataDirectory/1/

prodesignations.aspx.

✓ Contact the organization issuing the financial title to confirm that the financial professional 

is currently authorized to use the title and to determine if they have any disciplinary history.
See the SEC Investor Bulletin: “Top Tips for Selecting a Financial Professional” at: www.sec.gov/investor/alerts/

ib_top_tips.pdf.

See the NASAA Alert: “Informed Investor Advisory: Financial Service Providers” at www.nasaa.org/22870/

informed-investor-advisory-financial-service-providers/.

To learn more about a particular professional designation, visit FINRA’s “Understanding Investment Professional 

Designations” at: http://apps.finra.org/DataDirectory/1/prodesignations.aspx.

To learn more about financial planners, including investment adviser, broker-dealer, and insurance agent laws and 

regulations, see the Government Accountability Office’s Report Regulatory Coverage Generally Exists for Financial 

Planners, but Consumer Protection Issues Remain at: www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-235.

For more investor educational information, visit the SEC and NASAA’s respective websites for individual investors 

at: www.investor.gov and www.nasaa.org/investor-education.

NASAA model rule on the use of senior-specific certification and professional designations at: www.nasaa.org/

wp-content/uploads/2011/07/3-Senior_Model_Rule_Adopted.pdf.

For More Information

The Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has provided this information as a service to investors. 

It is neither a legal interpretation nor a statement of SEC policy. If you have questions concerning the 

meaning or application of a particular law or rule, please consult with an attorney who specializes in 

securities law.

SEC Pub. No. 160 (9/13)