The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority released Regulatory Notice 15-50, which discusses the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of amendments to FINRA Rule 2210 (Communications with the Public). The amendments relate to heightened disclosure standards for references and hyperlinks to the BrokerCheck system on member firm websites. Under the revised rule, member firms’ websites will need to include a readily apparent reference and hyperlink to BrokerCheck. The reference and hyperlink to BrokerCheck must be located on the first webpage a member firm intends to be viewed by retail investors, as well as any other webpage that includes a professional profile of one or more registered persons who conduct business with retail investors. In assessing what constitutes “readily apparent,” FINRA will use a “reasonable retail investor” standard that assesses factors such as the placement, font size and font color of the reference and hyperlink.

FINRA Regulatory Notice 15-50 is available here.