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RIA, Series 7, Series 6, Series 66?

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Jul 15, 2010 12:26 am

I plan to be an investment advisor who charges my clients a 1% managment fee, holds assets at a Fidelity or Schwab type company, recommends investments, and places traded on behalf of my clients.  I've heard different things about what certificiations I need to do this.  Some say just RIA.  Some say Series 7.  One catch is, if I am new to the industry, apparently I can become a RIA on my own, but I need to be sponsored by a brokerage firm to get a series seven.  But I don't want to be an employee of a brokerage firm, I want to remain independent.  I guess there's no way to remain independent and get a series 7, but then again, perhaps I don't need a series 7?  Thanks.

Jul 15, 2010 5:02 am

It seems to me like you want to be looking at the Series 65.  You can't sell insurance products (incl annuities) with that, so you should consider whether that's important to you.

Jul 15, 2010 5:46 am

I had a similar question.

I currently have some clients who have given me trading authority over their accounts. I trade their accounts and charge them a quarterly fee based on the assets in their account.

I'm an independent person, not affiliated with any b/d. I'm wanting to expand my business and I'm studying for my series 65 to become an RIA. 

The big question is can I cold call (locally and nationally) to aquire new clientele? Or is cold calling forbidden if you do not have a Series 7??

Jul 15, 2010 5:50 am

In terms of:  It seems to me like you want to be looking at the Series 65.  You can't sell insurance products (incl annuities) with that, so you should consider whether that's important to you.

Do you mean as in RIA only I can't sell annuties, therefore I should get a Seies 65 in order to be able to sell annuities?

Do I need to be sponsored by a brokerage co to get a Series 65 or can I just do it on my own?  Thanks.

Jul 15, 2010 8:43 am

[quote=HumanRIA]

Do I need to be sponsored by a brokerage co to get a Series 65 or can I just do it on my own?  Thanks.

[/quote]

No need to be sponsored for s65. I just went to the Finra website and completed the U10 application form. After the U10 you need to call Sylvan or Prometric to get a test appointment. Once you pass the test you fill out form ADV and voila you're an RIA.

Jul 15, 2010 10:04 pm

Series 65 doesn't get you insurance products or annuities.  These are products that are generally sold for commission so you wouldn't logically be selling them if you're fee only.

Jul 16, 2010 1:33 pm

Not to digress.....

Mar 31, 2017 12:04 am

To be independent such as a Registered Investment advisor, you need series 65 and at the same time have your series 7 that will allow you to sell securities like I do but you will need to be registered with an investment company for your series 7

Dec 21, 2017 10:48 pm

stevenolu wrote:

To be independent such as a Registered Investment advisor, you need series 65 and at the same time have your series 7 that will allow you to sell securities like I do but you will need to be registered with an investment company for your series 7

The security type matters less than how you charge for your services. I hold a 65 and I can sell MFs and stocks and ETFs as long as I don't charge the client a sales commission. I called my state securities commission this week to confirm this.