Learn FINRA Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Training

Explore how financial markets connect money seekers with investors, enable liquidity and price discovery, and distinguish primary and secondary markets, with roles for broker dealers, investment banks, and market makers.

Explore the market structure from the NYSE and Nasdaq to regional exchanges, and learn how indices like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite track performance.

Explore how the Federal Reserve uses monetary policy, interest rates, and money supply to influence markets, while fiscal policy and taxes shape stocks and bonds.

Explore bull and bear markets, the expansion, peak, contraction, trough, and recovery phases of the economic cycle, and sector rotation strategies to navigate evolving stock prices.

Explore the bond universe, including corporate, municipal, government, and agency bonds, and learn key features like par value, coupon, maturity, and yields, plus how interest rates drive prices.

Explore alternative investments, including real estate investment trusts, master limited partnerships, hedge funds, and private equity to analyze income generation, tax considerations, risk, and regulatory differences.

Learn about unit investment trusts with fixed portfolios and not actively managed structures, equity and bond units, and variable annuities with tax-deferred growth and education savings options like 529 plans.

Understand how options provide the right to buy or sell an underlying asset, with call and put types, strike, expiration, premium, and 100-share contracts, used for hedging or speculation.

Explore how trades move from execution to settlement, with clearing by the DTCC and delivery versus payment, now settled on a T plus one cycle in the US.

Compare traditional and Roth IRAs, tax-deductible vs after-tax contributions, tax-deferred growth, and tax-free Roth withdrawals, while noting RMDs, penalties, employer plans, and caps shaping tax strategy.

Identify and correct trade errors by notifying department, cancel or adjust trades, transfer securities to correct account, apply as-of corrections, document changes, inform clients, and comply with FINRA/SEC oversight.

Explore pump-and-dump manipulation, from spreading false information on social media during promotion to profiting on the dump, with red flags, painting the tape, wash trades, spoofing, layering, and penalties.

Explain how insider trading uses material nonpublic information to trade or tip others. Show how sec rules, enforcement, misappropriation theory, and landmark cases deter this illegal advantage.

Explore common customer fraud schemes, including Ponzi and pyramid schemes and affinity fraud, and identify red flags like guarantees of high returns, lack of transparency, and unregistered investments.

the securities act of 1933 establishes full and fair disclosure, prevents fraud, and builds investor confidence by requiring registration with the SEC and transparent information for investment decisions.

Explore how the investment company act of 1940 ensures oversight, transparency, and fair pricing for funds, and how the investment adviser act of 1940 enforces fiduciary duties and registration.

Learn how Finra, the SEC-regulated self-regulatory body, licenses broker-dealers and registered reps, administers the SIE and Series 7 exams, enforces fair-dealing rules, monitors markets, and resolves disputes to protect investors.

Explore how the customer protection rule and Regulation ESP safeguard investor assets and privacy, detailing asset segregation, reserve requirements, daily reconciliation, data security, and identity theft prevention.

Learn how the Bank Secrecy Act drives AML compliance by requiring record keeping, currency transaction reports, suspicious activity reporting, and a strong CIP with KYC.

Learn how financial firms implement a regulatory business continuity plan under Finra rule 470 to withstand emergencies and cyber threats, ensuring client access and rapid recovery.

Compare fiduciary duty and the suitability standard, including ongoing monitoring, full disclosure, and Reg B guidance for broker-dealers.

Explore how Finra rules govern gifts and entertainment in finance, including a $100 per person per year limit, required record keeping, and practices to avoid conflicts of interest.

Learn about outside business activities and private securities transactions, including disclosure, pre-approval, and ongoing supervision under FINRA rules to prevent selling away and protect investors.

Understand how firms handle customer complaints—from acknowledgement to investigation, resolution, or escalation to FINRA arbitration—and the role of documentation and regulatory reporting.

Understand how investment risk arises from market risk, credit risk, and liquidity risk, and learn to manage them through diversification, asset allocation, and awareness of interest rate and inflation impacts.

Diversify across asset classes to spread risk. Allocate among stocks, bonds, cash equivalents, and alternatives to align with goals and risk tolerance, then rebalance to maintain the target allocation.

Learn how suitability ensures recommendations fit a customer’s financial situation, objectives, and risk tolerance under FINRA rule 2111. Document the investment profile and rationale to support regulatory compliance.

Reg BI raises the bar from suitability, requiring brokers to act in clients' best interests by evaluating alternatives, disclosing conflicts, and adhering to compliance standards.