What's New in Investor Education

This Friday the 13th, don’t knock on wood or avoid black cats when it comes to your financial matters. Instead, take steps to safeguard your financial situation. These five tips can help you ward off bad luck when it comes to your finances.

Scammers frequently take advantage of the limited resale market for timeshares, specifically targeting motivated timeshare sellers and renters. Timeshare exit fraud is a serious problem that can lead to significant financial losses.

Many financial firms offer both brokerage and investment advisory services. If a firm provides both types of services, you might be able to choose between having a brokerage account, an advisory account or both. Be sure you understand the differences in the services provided and fees involved.

Feeder funds are one avenue through which retail investors can gain exposure to alternative investment strategies. While these funds might offer lower investment minimums than traditional alternatives, they come with unique features and potential limitations investors should carefully evaluate.

Most mutual funds and ETFs pool investor money to buy individual assets. Funds of funds are different—they invest in other funds, which can provide greater diversification but also comes with the potential for higher fees and other risks.

Have you thought about taking steps to improve your financial health? The new year is a great time to check on your investments, revisit your budget, and improve your overall financial wellness. Read on for five tips to boost your financial savvy for the year ahead.

While most financial firms prevent investors from directly using credit cards to purchase investments, there are ways to use them indirectly. But investors should exercise caution when considering using credit cards in connection with investing.

FINRA has seen a recent significant spike in investor complaints resulting from recommendations made by fraudulent “investment groups” promoted through social media channels. Complaints describe bad actors, posing as registered investment advisers, who advertise “stock investment groups” on Instagram and other social media channels and then turn to encrypted group chats on WhatsApp to communicate with interested investors and pitch investments.

Smishing is a fraud tactic in which scammers send unsolicited messages to targets over short message service (SMS), or text messages. Messages might appear to come from a financial institution and require immediate action, but don’t engage—chances are good they’re fraudulent.

One factor that might influence your decision to hold a particular investment in your portfolio is whether it seems like a good value. But there are many ways to define the value of an investment, and these can vary based on the type of product you’re considering.

In conjunction with World Investor Week 2025, FINRA, the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), the National Futures Association (NFA) and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) are issuing this Investor Bulletin to highlight ways in which emerging technologies, innovation, and financial fraud and scams are impacting investors.

Some characteristics and routine behaviors have been found to be associated with an increased risk of fraud for older adults. Steps like reducing exposure to scams, researching investments, and building financial knowledge can help reduce risk.

Momentum investing is a trading strategy that involves trading stocks that are moving rapidly and then exiting positions before the prices begin to move in the opposite direction. But stock prices can quickly shift, so trying to figure out when a stock is nearing its peak—or trough—is challenging.

Funds tracking non-traditional indexes can provide investors with an expanded set of investment opportunities beyond those offered by traditional indexes. But they can also create additional complexities and risks to consider.

Many unregistered entities are increasingly promoting their auto-trading services to retail investors on social media, making misleading claims about their ease of use and level of risk. Investors should know the risks before using these services.

Direct indexing is a strategy that seeks to replicate performance with direct ownership of securities held in a particular index. This can provide the flexibility to customize holdings and the potential for greater control over tax impacts, but direct indexing also comes with unique risks.

FINRA Foundation’s latest wave of the National Financial Capability Study showed that more Americans are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet and set aside emergency funds, as they face the impact of higher food costs, and engaging in expensive credit card practices.

Every year, millions of older investors become victims of financial exploitation, resulting in billions of dollars in personal losses. Read more about rules that allow brokerage firms to take steps to protect seniors and other specified adults.

You don’t need a specialized degree to read a company’s financial statements and glean valuable information that can help you make your investment decisions. There’s a wealth of financial data about a company’s operations, investments, indebtedness and much more easily accessible to investors who know where to look.

Value investing involves buying securities that, based on fundamental analysis, are trading below their intrinsic worth or at a discount to the market or their peers. Learn more about value investing and factors to consider when thinking about following this investment strategy.

Fractional shares offer investors an opportunity to purchase pieces of stock shares. While fractional shares can offer flexibility and convenience, it’s important to understand their associated limitations and how your brokerage firm handles them.

A financial professional designation is like a certification or credential. They’re different from registration or licenses. This bulletin can help investors better understand the professional designations financial professionals might use.

Many people are turning to online trading platforms for their investing needs rather than speaking directly with a representative at a brokerage firm. While this might sound straightforward, common misconceptions persist. If you’re considering online trading, here are some things to know.

Market timing is an active investment strategy involving shifting money in and out of the market or from one investment to another to exploit anticipated short-term price movements. Market timing can involve transferring between equity sectors and asset classes, or liquidating assets.

Borrowing against your home to invest is always risky, and the potentially high value of these loans can make home equity a prime target for scammers. FINRA has seen an increase in reporting of fraudulent schemes involving home loans taken out for investment purposes. Here are some things to know.