投资顾问汤姆哈姆林是在俄勒冈州波特兰办事处的电话会议上，上周有一天，当他有一个紧急留言时，他提醒他一名客户已经过去了。萨默塞特财富策略的汉林，创始人兼首席执行官，令人震惊和悲伤，几十年来与客户密切合作。情况急剧提醒继承规划的重要性，哈姆林说顾问经常等待考虑，直到它为时已晚。
“如果发生在一个组织中是一个关键人物的人身上，那它看起来像什么？”他说。
In the case of Somerset, Hamlin knows the answer. In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York, which dealt a heavy blow to several financial organizations, including Morgan Stanley and Cantor Fitzgerald, Hamlin and his colleagues created a detailed business continuity and transition plan for Somerset. He knows exactly what will happen to his stake in the firm and who will take over leadership if something happens to him. If Somerset’s systems are damaged or destroyed, there are redundant servers in several safe locations to keep the business going.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is hoping to persuade more registered investment advisers to take similar steps. On June 28, the regulator issued a proposed rule that would require RIAs to adopt and implement both business continuity plans, which were already required under the SEC’s compliance programs rule, as well as transition plans. The newproposed rule需要维护的关键操作和systems; data backup; the selection of prearranged alternate locations at which to conduct business in the event of an emergency; a plan for communication with clients, employees, service providers and regulators should the contingency plan become necessary; and identification of third-party services that are critical to a firm’s operation. It also requires a transition plan that addresses any issues that would arise in the event that the business had to be wound down or shifted to a new lead adviser or firm.
秒主席Mary Jo White said at the time该提案是“委员会在努力现代化的最新行动，并加强资产管理行业的监管保障。”但是，业界的一些人解释了新规则，特别是涉及过渡或继承的部分，作为Dodd-Frank-ERA监管的超越，将压力放在一个造成的系统威胁的行业上。
“How does this apply to me?” asks Hamlin about the rule proposal. “My whole company literally could go down on a plane, and my clients’ money is still fine.”
哈姆林实际上确保他公司的每个人在同一飞机上同时在同一飞机上，但投资顾问协会总裁兼首席执行官Karen Barr同意他的观点。专家们说，由于Rias'客户在托管人或银行掌握了托管人或银行的资金，而且在不必搬运任何资金的情况下，它相对容易。根据IAA和SEC的统计，大约12,000次rias在业内，最大的120家公司管理业内50％的资产，71％的顾问管理不到10亿美元。
“Quite frankly, the vast majority of RIAs are small businesses,” says Barr. “Each new rule is a new layer of complexity and cost.”
在其提案中，SEC表示，它希望创建和实施新的业务连续性和过渡计划将在30,000至150万美元之间的价格降低，具体取决于每个顾问现有计划的充分性。预计持续成本预计每年将从7,500美元到375,000美元。BARR是担心原子能机构采取单规范的所有方法，他表示，IAA计划参加9月6日结束的评论期，希望澄清规则的灵活性。
在灾难性的事件之后，如9/11和飓风桑迪，而且具有不断增长的threat of cybercrime当涉及到业务连续性时，许多rias都采取了额外的预防措施。尽管如此，过渡规划一般不是一个高优先级。这也不是许多较小的公司认为他们能负担得起珍贵资源的东西。
华盛顿律师事务所和雷德斯·雷德斯和格雷斯·雷德斯斯沃思的David Tittsworth和IAA前总统兼首席执行官，同时举办讲习班，他经历了这种态度，特别是来自较小公司的态度。他试图给他们留下深刻的印象，如果他们试图出售他们的业务或实施内部过渡计划，他们应该期待什么。
“It was clear they were not doing much to address that or put in place any plans,” Tittsworth says. “I think a lot of it is just an unwillingness to look at the reality.”
It’s not fun to talk about the possibility that a business will have to be passed on one day, even if no catastrophe strikes, but Tittsworth says it’s important to remember another reality as well: Investment advising is a very personal business built on relationships, and the value and direction of an individual firm often depend heavily on the individual at the helm. If advisers need convincing to plan, regardless of what the final SEC rule looks like, Tittsworth suggests they remember this: “If you’ve been working your whole life to develop this firm, your idea of what it’s worth may be very different from what the market believes.”
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