Investor Protection Guides
Plain-language guides to help investors evaluate financial advisors, understand regulatory data, and protect themselves from fraud.
These guides are for educational purposes only. Not financial or legal advice.
Why intensity, not headcount
According to FINRA BrokerCheck as of July 2026, Citigroup Global Markets Inc. leads raw disclosure volume at 1,233 events (#1 of 3,051 active graded firms) but sits #86 of 443 on disclosures-per-office (0.43). Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC leads that intensity board at 12.55 per branch on 44 offices (552 disclosures).
- #1 of 3,051
- Citigroup Global Markets Inc.: raw disclosure volume
- 1,233
- disclosures on the volume leader
- #1 of 443
- Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC: disclosures per office
- 12.55
- per office, ≥10 branches
Volume rank is not intensity rank. Grades size-normalize disclosure load by branch footprint among same-size peers. A disclosure is a reported event, not a proven violation. See methodology.
How far the graded corpus reaches
Of 80,028 FINRA-registered broker-dealer rows in this extract, 20,055 carry a size-normalized A-F grade. Segments sum to the registry, coverage shape, not the volume≠intensity leaders above.
How to Vet a Financial Advisor
Step-by-step process for researching a financial advisor's background, registration, and disciplinary history.
Reading BrokerCheck Reports
How to interpret a FINRA BrokerCheck report, what each section means and what to look for.
Red Flags in Advisor Records
Warning signs in disciplinary records that suggest a firm may not be trustworthy.
Understanding FINRA Disclosures
What each disclosure category means, complaints, regulatory actions, terminations, and more.
Choosing Between Broker-Dealer Firms
A data-driven approach to comparing firms using disciplinary rates and grades.
SEC Enforcement Actions Explained
How SEC enforcement works, types of actions, and what litigation releases mean for investors.
Investment Fraud Warning Signs
The most common warning signs of Ponzi schemes and advisor misconduct. How to protect yourself.
Registry pages these guides cite
Guides explain how to read the records. Firm, state, and enforcement pages carry the live FINRA BrokerCheck extract. For informational purposes; does not constitute financial advice.
Methodology
Our guides are based on publicly available data from authoritative government sources. All statistics, ratings, and figures cited in these guides are drawn directly from official datasets and publications, with sources clearly referenced throughout.
We aim to present complex government data in plain language that is accessible to general audiences. When methodologies differ between data sources or change over time, we note these variations inline. Our editorial process includes regular reviews to ensure accuracy and timeliness of the information presented.
Open Data
Download broker-dealer-safety-grade-statistics.csv for national grade and disclosure aggregates. When reusing the table, name PlainAdvisorCheck as the compiler.