Thirty states have now enacted legislation to protect senior and vulnerable investors from financial exploitation. The state statutes apply to broker-dealers and investment advisers and typically require or permit (i) reports to government agencies, (ii) disclosure to third parties, and (iii) holds on suspicious disbursements and/or transactions.
Along with these relatively new laws, firms must comply with reporting obligations under long-standing adult protective services, or APS, statutes that aim to protect the state’s senior and vulnerable population generally.
Often in the states that have adopted financial exploitation statutes, firms that suspect financial exploitation neglect to consider making a report under the APS statute. This can be a mistake.
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