CFP Board, FPA and NAPFA Submit Joint Comment Letter to FINRA on Combating Financial Exploitation

On March 9, 2026, CFP Board, the Financial Planning Association (FPA), and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) submitted a joint comment letter to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA), urging FINRA to strengthen its rules to protect seniors and other vulnerable adults from financial exploitation and all investors from fraud.

Incidents of reported investment fraud and corresponding consumer losses have skyrocketed in recent years, especially among seniors who are reported to have lost over $4.8 billion in 2024 alone. In the joint comment letter, CFP Board, FPA and NAPFA highlight the important role CFP® professionals play on the front lines of the fight against fraud and exploitation and strongly support FINRA's continued efforts to provide firms and financial professionals with important tools to combat this widespread problem, including the proposed amendments designed to encourage more investors to identify trusted contacts and to implement and extend temporary hold periods when financial exploitation or fraud is suspected.

The organizations recommend that FINRA go even further to address this critical issue by requiring customers to either designate a trusted contact or affirmatively "opt out" of doing so; consider mandatory reporting of suspected financial exploitation or fraud; and provide an extended initial hold time for suspected fraud on all accounts to better protect everyone in cases of emergencies.

To read the full letter, please click here.