Compliance · Communications
FINRA Rule 2210
Also known as: Rule 2210, FINRA 2210, Communications with the Public
FINRA Rule 2210 governs how broker-dealers communicate with the public. It sorts every written communication into three categories, each carrying a different approval, filing, and recordkeeping burden. Audience size sets the category, not channel. A YouTube video and a mailed brochure can carry identical obligations.
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The three categories
Classification turns on audience size. Count how many retail investors the communication is distributed or made available to in any 30 calendar-day period.
| Category | Audience | Principal approval |
|---|---|---|
| Retail communication | More than 25 retail investors in any 30 calendar-day period | Required before the earlier of use or filing |
| Correspondence | 25 or fewer retail investors in any 30 calendar-day period | Not required. Supervision and review under Rule 3110 apply instead |
| Institutional communication | Institutional investors only, excluding a firm's internal communications | Not required before first use where written procedures cover education, training, and surveillance |
What the rule requires
| Obligation | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Approval | An appropriately qualified registered principal approves each retail communication before the earlier of first use or filing with FINRA's Advertising Regulation Department. |
| Filing | For one year from the date membership becomes effective, a new member files retail communications published in any public medium at least 10 business days before first use. Other categories carry their own filing windows. |
| Recordkeeping | Retain the communication and its approval record for the period required by SEA Rule 17a-4(b), which is three years. |
| Content standard | Fair, balanced, and providing a sound basis for evaluating the facts. No false, exaggerated, promissory, or misleading statements. No performance predictions or projections, with narrow exceptions for hypothetical illustrations of mathematical principles, Rule 2214 investment analysis tools, and research-report price targets. |
What this means for your marketing
- Your posting cadence sets your workload. The 25-investor threshold is a rolling 30-day count rather than a per-campaign one. A channel publishing weekly produces retail communications continuously, so principal approval belongs inside the production schedule.
- Get the script reviewed first, then approve the cut. The finished video is the retail communication that needs the principal's sign-off, so a script review is a way to avoid a reshoot, not a substitute for approving the piece that actually publishes.
- The "no projections" standard rules out the usual finance hook. "Here's how to double your retirement savings" is a performance projection. The compliant version reframes to process: "Here's how compounding works." Plan for this at the hook stage, where most finance video scripts fail.
- Retention edits can break an approved script. Cutting a qualifier to tighten a video turns a balanced statement into an unbalanced one. Approval covers what was approved, so re-review anything the edit materially changed.
What this looks like in a script
A specific forward return is a projection of performance. Naming the objective instead of the number keeps the hook.
Fair and balanced means risk gets comparable prominence to benefit rather than a footnote.
Retail communications must disclose the member firm's name.
Common questions
Primary sources
- FINRA Rule 2210, Communications with the Publicfull rule text
- Advertising Regulation FAQsFINRA staff interpretations
- What and When to Filefiling categories and deadlines
- Advertising Regulation Related Noticesamendments and current guidance
- FINRA Rule 3110, Supervisionthe review standard correspondence falls under
Related terms
Daniel Schoester
Founder & CEO
Daniel Schoester combines years of SEO obsession with financial know-how. After receiving an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration (Finance), Daniel began working at a prominent mortgage website, where his content quickly quadrupled monthly traffic to over one million views.
Building on this success, Daniel launched Croton Content to help clients scale through evergreen content assets — notably working with Forbes Advisor, Moneywise, and Hardbacon.
In 2024, Daniel expanded his focus to YouTube after studying Google’s algorithm changes. He noticed YouTube’s increasing alignment with search visibility compared to traditional written SEO content — plus its ability to generate passive revenue and long-term brand authority.
Educational information only. This is not legal or compliance advice. Confirm current requirements with your compliance officer and the primary sources above.
Last reviewed: 20 August 2026 · Reviewed against FINRA rule text and current Regulatory Notices.