I'm trying to figure out what the minimum requirements are to trade accounts for other people and do it legally. I want to use IB's new FA account. As near I can tell, the only requirement seems to be a Registered Investment Advisor. I know I"ll need a series 65. I looked at www.iard.com which is the Investment Advisor Registration Depository. What a load of beauracratic crap. I could understand if it really protected anyone, but it seems like an excuse to collect a bunch of piddly fees. Form ADV? What is it and do I need it? They keep talking about "advisory firms". Can that be just me, or is that another big bunch of hoops to jump through? Any other paperwork requirments? Any comments or suggestions are appreciated. If anyone has actually done this on their own, I'd be happy to pay you for your time to go over it with me.
I've been an IRA for a long time, but don't know if this info is current... It USED to be that you could operate as an RIA if (a) you had less than 15 paying clients in the prior 12 months, and (b) you did not "hold yourself out" to the public as being in the RIA business. (Proof in your not holding yourself out lies with you. That is, no stationery, no mention of RIA on business cards, not listed in the phonebook as RIA, no advertisements and any other thing you can think of. All the rules of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 still apply to you, especially the anti-fraud provisions... listed in Title 17, Code of Federal Regulations.) Now that the registration has gone online, I'd call the SEC and speak to someone for guidance. And yes, it's a sorry excuse to collect a bunch of fees.