The “boomer bulge” in the US aging demographic, combined with a persistent low-interest-rate environment, leads regulators to renew their warnings about retail sales of complex investment products to older investors.
SEC Commissioner Aguilar told an April 14 meeting of state securities regulators that the two agencies should work together to increase disclosure regulations and enforcement actions targeting retail sales of structured notes and other complex products. The structured notes market is a $45 Billion market, of which about 99% is sold to retail investors, said Aguilar. The SEC issued an Investor Bulletin on structured note products earlier this year.
His remarks are here.
Just a day later, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections & Examinations issued a joint report with FINRA, the “National Senior Investor Initiative” (April 15, 2015). The Report expressed concern over sales of complex and alternative investment products to seniors.
