%20(1).avif)
.avif)
Client calls and texts can contain investment instructions, account information, and other business correspondence your firm needs to retain.
Failure to preserve required records can carry substantial penalties. In 2024, the SEC brought recordkeeping cases against more than 70 firms, resulting in over $600 million in civil penalties.
Selecting a business phone app for financial professionals, therefore, requires more than comparing calling and texting features.
iPlum provides features that financial professionals can use to address certain SEC recordkeeping requirements, forming part of your broader compliance program.
Below, we discuss those capabilities and the considerations that should inform your firm’s purchasing decision.
Table of Contents
1. What should financial professionals look for in a business phone app?
2. What does iPlum offer for financial professionals’ recordkeeping needs?
3. What should your firm confirm before subscribing?
4. Phone apps and SEC recordkeeping: frequently asked questions
5. Get a phone app built for mobile compliance
What should financial professionals look for in a business phone app?
Before you spend your money on an app that promises to help your firm meet the SEC regulator compliance, check if it offers the following.
A dedicated channel for business communication
Look for a business number that advisors can use for both incoming and outgoing communication. Clients should be able to call or reply to that number throughout the relationship.
Also, examine how the firm administers the line. An advisor’s business communication account should have an identified owner and a documented process for account reassignment.
Complete and accessible text records
Ask the vendor to demonstrate an archived conversation, including replies. Inspect the message content, participant information, timestamps, and treatment of attachments.
Then request an export. A list showing that an advisor sent a text is different from a record containing what the advisor and client discussed.
Protection against alteration
For broker-dealers using electronic storage under SEC Rule 17a-4, the rules permit WORM storage or a qualifying audit-trail alternative. WORM means “write once, read many.” The alternative must permit reconstruction of original records following modification or deletion.
Therefore, assess the storage method and associated documentation rather than accepting “cloud backup” as sufficient evidence.
The SEC explains both options in its electronic recordkeeping amendments.
Retention and reviewer access
Compare the available archive period with your firm’s retention schedule.
Ask what happens when a subscription expires, an employee leaves, or a record requires preservation beyond normal deletion dates.
Furthermore, establish who can retrieve records and whether exports provide usable files. Test those permissions before approving the service for client communication.
Recording capabilities appropriate to your firm
If your firm requires call recording, assess automatic recording, incoming and outgoing calls, announcement settings, and playback quality.
Recording duties are distinct from text preservation. For example, FINRA Rule 3170 imposes recording obligations on firms meeting its specified criteria; it is not a universal requirement for all financial advisors.
What does iPlum offer for financial professionals’ recordkeeping needs?
iPlum’s financial compliance line combines a business phone number with recording, archiving, and account administration.
Financial professionals can use those capabilities within their communication and recordkeeping procedures.
It is worth noting that the relevant features are available through the iPlum Enterprise plan. Below is what iPlum offers for the financial professional recordkeeping compliance.
A dedicated business number on an existing smartphone
iPlum gives advisors a separate business line on their existing mobile devices. Client calls and texts use the iPlum number, while personal communication uses the advisor’s personal line.
Your firm can obtain a new number or port an existing business number into iPlum. Porting is a good option when clients already recognize the number and use it for ongoing correspondence.
Automatic recording for incoming and outgoing calls
iPlum’s automatic call recording records incoming and outgoing calls through the business line. Once configured, the process does not require advisors to activate recording separately for every conversation.
For firms with recording requirements, automatic activation reduces dependence on individual actions. A recording can also provide context when reviewing a disputed instruction or examining what an advisor communicated.
Pro tip: Before client use, test both call directions and verify that the resulting recordings are available. Incorporate recording checks into the process for issuing new lines so that account setup matches your firm’s policy from the outset.
Recording announcements
iPlum allows an automated voice announcement at the beginning of calls. Your firm can use the recording announcement feature to notify participants that a conversation is being recorded.
Archiving for incoming and outgoing business texts
iPlum provides bidirectional texting and message archiving. Advisors can send messages from their business number, and clients can reply to the same number.
Preserving both sides provides context for a review. An advisor’s confirmation alone, for example, does not explain the client instruction that preceded it.
WORM storage for archived communications
iPlum describes its financial communication archive as using non-rewriteable, non-erasable WORM storage.
The purpose is record integrity: protecting preserved communication against alteration or deletion during its retention period. An ordinary conversation history on an employee’s device does not provide the same assurance.
For your firm, the purchasing question is how the archive’s protections match the applicable storage requirements.
Long-term retention
The iPlum Enterprise plan provides a rolling 10-year archive for texts and call recordings.
A longer available archive period gives your firm room to implement its retention schedule. That said, the subscription’s duration is not a substitute for determining how long particular records must remain available.
Access to archived records
The iPlum portal allows users to select a line and month in Usage Reports, inspect text content, and download logs containing text content as CSV files.
In addition, users can play call recordings through the app or portal and download audio files.
Those functions allow your firm to examine the underlying communication rather than only the date of an interaction. During evaluation, ask the intended reviewer to retrieve a sample exchange and open the exported files.
Account administration and security
iPlum provides business account administration for managing multiple users. Your firm can therefore administer advisor lines through an organizational account.
Administrators can also configure password policies, including two-factor authentication, password complexity, and an app passcode.
You can configure access according to assigned responsibilities. As a result, an employee who manages billing does not necessarily require the same access as a compliance reviewer.
50+ business calling and texting features
iPlum offers 50+ calling and texting features in addition to its recording and archiving capabilities. Financial professionals can therefore evaluate it as their daily business phone service as well as part of their recordkeeping process.
Features range from call routing to routine client correspondence and more. Some key functions include:
- Phone tree and extensions: Route callers to the appropriate advisor or department.
- Business hours and greetings: Set expectations for availability and responses.
- Web calling and texting: Use the business number from a computer.
- Voicemail transcription: Read a written version of a voicemail.
- Scheduled texts and templates: Prepare appointment reminders and standard responses.
- Group and broadcast messaging: Communicate with multiple recipients using the appropriate message format.
iPlum also offers Shared Line. With line sharing, authorized colleagues can answer calls, respond to texts, and review message history on a shared line. An assistant can therefore manage client inquiries when an advisor is unavailable.
What should your firm confirm before subscribing?
Do the following before you subscribe to a phone app that enables compliant communication for financial professionals.
First, test the communication formats you intend to authorize. Send incoming and outgoing messages, add permitted attachments, and complete calls in both directions. Confirm where the resulting records appear.
Then, test reviewer access. Have an authorized reviewer retrieve the sample records through their own account. Open the exported messages and recordings to check that the files contain the information expected.
Document activation dates. Establish when recording and archiving begin for newly issued lines. Arrange preservation of earlier business records separately.
Address employee departures. Decide who takes responsibility for the number, who retains archive access, and what must happen before an employee’s account is disabled.
Confirm cancellation terms. Ask how your firm obtains its records before ending the subscription. Establish the available export formats, any charges, and the deadline for completing the transfer.
Finally, broker-dealers should assess the written undertakings applicable to their electronic recordkeeping arrangements.
Phone apps and SEC recordkeeping: frequently asked questions
Does purchasing a business phone app make a firm SEC compliant?
No. Your firm remains responsible for its obligations. A phone app provides capabilities for designated communication channels; compliance also requires appropriate procedures, configuration, supervision, and preservation of other required records.
Which iPlum plan offers recording and long-term archiving?
The Enterprise plan provides call recording, recording announcements, and long-term text and recording archiving. Your firm should confirm account configuration and subscription conditions before authorizing advisors to use their new business lines.
Can advisors use iPlum on personal smartphones?
Yes. Advisors can use a separate iPlum business number on an existing smartphone. Your firm should specify the approved number for client communication and establish procedures for business account access.
Does iPlum archive incoming and outgoing texts?
Yes. iPlum provides archiving for bidirectional business texting. During evaluation, inspect representative conversations and exported records, particularly if your advisors plan to use attachments, group messages, or other message formats.
Does every financial firm need automatic call recording?
No. Recording duties depend on applicable rules and the firm’s activities. FINRA Rule 3170 applies to specified firms. Your compliance personnel should determine recording requirements before configuring the phone service.
How should a firm choose its retention period?
Determine the applicable period for the firm’s registration, record category, and obligations. Then compare that period with the service’s archive terms and document any arrangements required for extended record preservation.
Can a firm transfer an existing business number to iPlum?
Yes. iPlum offers number porting. Confirm eligibility and transfer requirements before scheduling the change. Also, arrange preservation of historical records separately; transferring a number does not establish a historical archive.
Get a phone app built for mobile compliance
Your firm needs a business communication channel that advisors can use consistently and authorized reviewers can examine.
iPlum gives financial professionals a dedicated number with recording, text archiving, and everyday calling and messaging functions. You can introduce those capabilities through the smartphones your advisors already use.
Start with the lines your firm needs, assign account responsibilities, and configure the service according to your communication procedures. Then, verify record access before client use.
Click the link below to get started with iPlum’s financial mobile communication solution and equip your advisors with a business phone service that contributes to your firm’s recordkeeping program.
