NEWS RELEASE
Wealthtender Commends the Texas State Securities Board for Modernizing Its Rules to Help Texans Make More Informed Hiring Decisions When Evaluating Financial Advisors
Millions of Texans preparing to hire financial advisors will no longer be limited to reading online reviews published by SEC-registered advisors, as approximately 1,400 Texas-registered advisors gain the ability to let their clients’ voices be heard.
AUSTIN, TEXAS, February 20, 2025
In a win for millions of Texas residents and approximately 1,400 small business owners in Texas who offer financial planning services, the Texas State Securities Board (TSSB) today voted to amend its rules that now permit state-registered financial advisors to request online reviews and share testimonials written by their clients.
This action by the TSSB follows in the footsteps of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that modernized its rules in 2021, granting federally-registered financial advisors the opportunity to collect and share client testimonials to help consumers make smarter hiring decisions, subject to rules designed to prevent fraud and disclosure requirements to increase transparency.
As SEC Chairman Jay Clayton stated in a 2019 press release, these reforms were “designed to address market developments and to improve the quality of information available to investors, enabling them to make more informed choices.”
Prior to this week’s action by the TSSB that leveled the playing field for Texas-registered financial advisors with SEC-registered advisors, a Texas consumer, likely unaware of whether local advisors on their shortlist are Texas or federally registered, might simply believe the advisors without client reviews are less experienced or may be less trustworthy than advisors with client testimonials published online.
Consumers Look for Online Reviews When Evaluating Financial Advisors
Consumers increasingly rely upon online reviews when evaluating financial service providers, with 81% of consumers in the 2023 BrightLocal Consumer Review Survey stating online reviews play an important or very important part role in their decision-making process.
For financial advisors interested in connecting with consumers, the 2024 Ficomm Consumer Research Report demonstrates the importance of advisors embracing online reviews in their marketing strategy, with 45% of all consumers choosing their financial advisor based on digital marketing. The Ficomm research shows the next generation of consumers places even greater emphasis on an advisor’s online presence, with 57% of consumers below the age of 44 influenced primarily by digital marketing, including online reviews.
Texas-Registered Financial Advisors Can Turn to Wealthtender for Help with Online Reviews
Before Texas-registered financial advisors begin collecting and publishing online reviews, they will need to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the SEC Marketing Rule adopted this week by the TSSB related to online reviews and learn how to establish a compliant testimonial marketing program.
Wealthtender launched the industry’s first financial advisor online review directory website in 2021 to provide SEC-registered financial advisors with a platform to compliantly collect and share client testimonials with consumers. Texas-registered financial advisors can now follow in the footsteps of federally-registered advisors and use the Testimonial Marketing Playbook offered by Wealthtender to establish a compliant program to collect and publish online reviews.
“As a business headquartered in Austin, our team at Wealthtender is especially excited that we can now help more than one thousand Texas-registered financial advisors share their client reviews online to help millions of consumers across the Lone Star State make more informed and educated hiring decisions,” says Brian Thorp, Wealthtender founder and CEO. “I commend Texas Securities Commissioner, Travis Iles, and the Texas State Securities Board, for their actions this morning that will ensure Texans can fairly evaluate financial advisors, whether they are Texas small business owners or affiliated with an SEC-registered wealth management firm.”
Many States Still Prohibit State-Registered Financial Advisors from Sharing Online Reviews
Securities regulators in about half of the 50 US states now provide state residents with the opportunity to read online reviews published by financial advisors regardless of their state or federal registration status. Clearly, there is more work to be done in the remaining states for the benefit of local residents and to ensure a level playing field for advisors.
While the TSSB took action partly based on a 2024 comment letter submitted by Wealthtender and regulators in states like Arizona have responded to advocacy efforts from local Financial Planning Association chapters, many states have not shown any inclination to modernize their rules, risking harm to small business owners and preventing local residents from being able to equally consider the experiences of clients working with both federal and state-registered financial advisors.
For example, when Wealthtender contacted the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation in 2024, a representative replied that California “is not considering changing the regulation/policy in the foreseeable future.” With approximately 2,744 state-registered advisors in California according to the NASAA Investment Adviser Section 2024 Annual Report, thousands of California small business owners operate at a disadvantage to federally-registered wealth management firms, many of which are headquartered out-of-state.
“It’s baffling that a state like California, known for its strong consumer protection rules, makes it easier for residents to read online reviews about financial advisors registered at the federal level than to learn how clients of financial advisors registered in California feel about their experience,” says Thorp. “It’s beyond time for the regulators in California and elsewhere to follow in the footsteps of Texas and nearly half the states that have modernized their rules that will ultimately benefit millions of Americans as they prepare to hire financial advisors.”
Tens of thousands of financial advisors across the US, both state and SEC-registered, wake up every morning looking out for the best interests of their clients and to improve their financial health. On behalf of all Americans, the team at Wealthtender encourages securities regulators in holdout state like California to join Texas this year in modernizing their rules to serve the best interests of the state residents they represent and letting the clients of state-registered advisors have their voices heard.
About Wealthtender
Wealthtender is an essential digital marketing platform for financial advisors and wealth management firms to get found online and convert more prospects into clients. Wealthtender launched the industry’s first online reviews platform designed for regulatory compliance in 2021 and operates the #1 find-an-advisor website visited by half a million consumers in the last year. Visit wealthtender.com/grow to learn more.
Media Contact:
Brian Thorp
Founder and CEO
Wealthtender
(512) 856-5406
brian@wealthtender.com
SOURCE Wealthtender, Inc.
