(a) This section
applies exclusively to broker-dealer services conducted by broker-dealers on
the premises of a financial institution where retail deposits are taken. This
section does not apply to broker-dealer services provided to non-retail
customers, such as institutional investors within the meaning of
AS
45.55.990(7)(D)(i) -
(iii).
(b) A broker-dealer may not conduct
broker-dealer services on the premises of a financial institution where retail
deposits are taken, unless the broker-dealer complies with the following
requirements:
(1) if practical, broker-dealer
services must be conducted in a physical location distinct from the area in
which the financial institution's retail deposits are taken; the broker-dealer
must identify its services in a manner that clearly distinguishes those
services from the financial institution's deposit-taking activities; the
broker-dealer's name must be clearly displayed in the area in which the
broker-dealer conducts its services;
(2) networking and brokerage affiliate
arrangements must be governed by a written agreement that sets out the
responsibilities of the parties and the compensation arrangements; that
agreement must provide that supervisory personnel of the broker-dealer and
representatives of the administrator are to be permitted access to the
financial institution's premises where the broker-dealer conducts broker-dealer
services in order to inspect the books and records and other relevant
information maintained by the broker-dealer with respect to broker-dealer
services; the broker-dealer must ensure that the agreement clearly outlines the
duties and responsibilities of each party;
(3) at or before the time that a customer's
securities brokerage account is opened by a broker-dealer on the premises of a
financial institution where retail deposits are taken, the broker-dealer must
(A) disclose, orally and in writing, that the
securities products purchased or sold in a transaction with the broker-dealer
are
(i) not insured by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund
(NCUSIF), as appropriate;
(ii) not
deposits or other obligations of the financial institution and are not
guaranteed by the financial institution; and
(iii) subject to investment risks, including
possible loss of the principal invested; and
(B) make reasonable efforts to obtain from
each customer during the account-opening process a written acknowledgment of
the disclosures required by (A) of this paragraph;
(4) if broker-dealer services include any
written or oral representations concerning insurance coverage, other than
coverage through the FDIC or NCUSIF, clear and accurate written or oral
explanations of the coverage must also be provided to the customers when those
representations are first made;
(5)
each of the broker-dealer's confirmations and account statements must indicate
clearly that the broker-dealer services are provided by the
broker-dealer;
(6) recommendations
by a broker-dealer concerning non-deposit investment products with a name
similar to that of the financial institution must occur under a sales program
designed to minimize the risk of customer confusion;
(7) advertisements and sales literature that
announce the location of a financial institution where broker-dealer services
are provided by the broker-dealer, or that are distributed by the broker-dealer
on the premises of a financial institution, must disclose that securities
products are
(A) not insured by the FDIC or
NCUSIF, as appropriate;
(B) not
deposits or other obligations of the financial institution and are not
guaranteed by the financial institution; and
(C) subject to investment risks, including
possible loss of the principal invested;
(8) to comply with (7) of this subsection, a
broker-dealer may use the following shorter, logo format disclosures in
advertisements and sales literature, including material published, or designed
for use, in a radio or television broadcast or on the screen of an automated
teller machine, billboards, signs, posters, and brochures, if those disclosures
are displayed in a conspicuous manner:
(A)
"Not FDIC Insured," or "Not NCUSIF Insured," as appropriate;
(9) if the omission of the disclosures
required by (7) of this subsection does not cause the advertisement or sales
literature to be misleading in the context in which the material is presented,
those disclosures are not required for messages contained in
(A) radio broadcasts of 30 seconds or
less;
(B) electronic signs,
including billboard-type signs that are electronic, time and temperature signs,
and ticker tape signs; for purposes of this subparagraph, electronic signs do
not include television, on-line computer services, or automated teller
machines; and
(C) signs, banners,
and posters if used only as location indicators;
(10) the broker-dealer must promptly notify
the financial institution if any agent of the broker-dealer who is employed by
the financial institution is terminated for cause by the
broker-dealer.
(c) This
section does not relieve a broker-dealer from compliance with AS 45.55, this
chapter, or other applicable laws, rules, or regulations that govern the
operations of broker-dealers and their agents, including supervisory
obligations.
(d) In this section,
(1) "affiliate" means a company that
controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with a broker-dealer as
defined in NASD Rule 2720(b);
(2)
"broker-dealer services" means the investment banking or securities business;
for purposes of this paragraph, "investment banking or securities business" has
the meaning given in paragraph (p) of Article I of the by-laws of the NASD, as
incorporated by NASD Rule 121;
(3)
"financial institution" means one of the following institutions, if located in
this state:
(A) a federal, national, or
state-chartered bank, savings and loan association, savings bank, or credit
union; or
(B) a service corporation
of an institution listed in (A) of this paragraph;
(4) "networking arrangement" and "brokerage
affiliate arrangement" mean a contractual or other arrangement between a
broker-dealer and a financial institution under which the broker-dealer
conducts broker-dealer services on the premises of the financial institution
where retail deposits are taken.