Despite constant and vocal grumbling, national brokerage and wirehouse advisors have steadily increased their satisfaction ratings of firms’ compliance programs.
“I am terribly disappointed in the overwhelming compliance mandates that are being handed down," one advisor wrote in the 2014 Broker Report Card. "New rules and new policies are conjured up every day. The blame for the mandate is placed on the 'regulators,' when, in actuality, the mandates are nothing but self-imposed rules to drive the firm's business objectives.”
Dozens of complaints regarding compliance littered this year’s write-in comments of this year’s survey, but it seems advisors are more satisfied with the way their firm is handling compliance now than at any point during the past five years.
Yet despite the pressure points, at least a few advisors say they’re sticking with their current firm and not exploring independence because while compliance may not be perfect at their current company, they don’t want to try and handle it on their own.
“Don’t think I could earn much higher payout and the headaches of renting space, and managing compliance alone seem daunting!” one advisor wrote.