The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expanding its WhatsApp investigation to examine whether asset managers used the app and other messaging apps to conduct official business.
According to AdvisorHub, the SEC has sent letters to investment firms requesting information regarding employee communication practices. Sources familiar with the matter shared that dozens of firms have received inquiries into what devices and applications employees are allowed to use for official communications. The Commission has also requested information concerning whether investment firms retain electronic records generated by outside messaging apps.
Several entities, including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have paid a record combined $2 billion in SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission penalties to settle allegations that some of their employees utilized unapproved channels to conduct business.
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