Records to Be Made

The recordmaking rule is the "making" half of the SEC recordkeeping pair. The records-retention rule covers preservation and format; the recordmaking rule covers what must be created in the first place. The full rule has more than 30 subsections; the Series 24 zeroes in on the supervisory-architecture provisions covered below.

Designated Recordkeeping Personnel at Each Office

For each office of the broker-dealer, the firm must make a record listing by name or title each person at that office who, without delay, can:

• Explain the types of records the firm maintains at that office
• Explain the information contained in those records

Why It Exists

The purpose is examiner accessibility. When an SEC or self-regulatory-organization (SRO) examiner walks into any branch office, the firm must already have on file a designation of who at that office can immediately answer the examiner's questions about the firm's records:

• What records are kept here
• What is in those records
• How to navigate them

The examiner does not have to wait for the home office, hunt through a directory, or rely on an associate guessing who knows what.

Office-Specific, Not Firm-Wide

The designation requirement is office-specific. Each office has its own designation:

• A 10-branch firm needs 10 designation records, one per office, each identifying the person(s) at that office
• A single home-office list of "go-to" recordkeeping contacts does not satisfy the requirement for the branches
• The designated person can be the same individual across multiple offices only if they are physically able to respond at each office without delay

Exam Tip: Gotchas

• The designation is OFFICE-SPECIFIC, not firm-wide. A firm cannot satisfy the rule by maintaining a single home-office list of recordkeeping contacts. Each branch must have its own designation. The exam may probe whether a centralized contact list at headquarters discharges the rule; it does not.
• The standard is "without delay," not "available." The designated person must be able to walk an examiner through the records immediately. A person who is "on call" elsewhere is not compliant for the office in question.

Account Approval Records

For each account record, the firm must indicate whether it was signed:

• By the associated person, if any, responsible for the account, AND
• Approved or accepted by a principal

Why It Exists

The signature-and-approval record ties each account to a specific natural person on the firm's side and to a specific principal who reviewed it. This becomes the documentary trail for any later investigation: the examiner can identify who opened the account and who signed off as principal.

• The signature requirement applies to the AP "responsible for" the account, which is typically the registered representative servicing the customer
• The principal-approval indication is captured at the account-record level, not just on a separate sign-off log
• The combination is what regulators call dual sign-off or dual approval

How This Connects to Customer Account Information

The FINRA customer account information requirement, covered in the Other Recordkeeping section, relies on the account-approval mechanic from the recordmaking rule. Account information must include the principal-approval indication; the substance of that indication is the dual sign-off requirement.

Exam Tip: Gotchas

• The recordmaking rule requires the account record itself to indicate signature and approval, not a separate sign-off log. A firm that captures principal approval in a workflow system but does not link it to the account record has a recordmaking gap.

Designated Principal for Compliance Policies

The firm must make a record listing each principal responsible for establishing policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure compliance with any applicable regulatory requirement that requires acceptance or approval of a record by a principal.

Two Things to Notice

Architect vs. Supervisor Records

Examiners can distinguish two questions:

• Who designed the firm's compliance architecture? (the designated principal record)
• Who supervises whom day-to-day? (FINRA supervisory-system records)

Both records are required, but they answer different questions. The architect record names the policy designer. The FINRA supervisory-system records identify the executors.

Think of it this way: The architect record is the building's architect. The FINRA supervisory system is the building's facility manager. You need both records: one to know who designed the structure, the other to know who runs it.

Exam Tip: Gotchas

• The architect record is the "who designed compliance" record, distinct from the FINRA supervisory-system records. The exam may present a fact pattern asking which captures the principal who designed the policies versus the principal who supervises associated persons day-to-day. Architecture is the designated-principal record; day-to-day supervision is the FINRA supervisory system.
• The architect record applies to records that REQUIRE principal acceptance or approval. Not every firm record requires principal sign-off; the designation is keyed to the records that do (account records, supervisory approvals under FINRA rules, certain customer-correspondence approvals, and similar items).

Comparing the Three Recordmaking Requirements

The three provisions covered here form a supervisory-architecture trilogy:

A firm can pass an examination on content (every record is captured) and still fail on architecture if any of the three provisions above is missing.