Ria are not the recipients of extreme danger when it comes to the trust they have created in their client relationships. An advisory business takes years to build and is as safe as confidence customers decide on it.
If there is one thing that can quickly undermine that belief, it is an unnecessary danger.
For Rias, the cryptocurrency industry (or “digital assets”) has traditionally been widespread: unnecessary operational, legal and regulatory risk. At the same time, clients are seeking greater access to digital assets. Surveys-included them from well-created institutions as Bank of America AND Charles Schwab– Show an increasing percentage of investors want exposure to digital assets.
These requirements place Rias in an unsafe position, where the thing they need to grow their business – using access to digital assets – threaten to undermine it at the same time.
Looking for solutions, the same surveys cite without change “regulatory concerns” as a number one barrier to entry. do 2025 Bitwise and Vettafi Digital Asset Survey, for example:
Despite the regulatory concerns that top the list each year, what is missing from these surveys is a tangible discussion of what these concerns are or how firms can navigate this environment. On the contrary, the same Bitwise and Vettafi 2025 survey offers a 1-2 sentence analysis mentioning “clearer adjustment” as antidot:
This study is just an example of a broader lack of real penetration on this issue. How can any executive team use this for decision making? The unfortunate elephant is that the answer to the “Regulatory Concerns” question pushes most RIs from investing in this class of assets.
In practice, “regulatory concerns” are not all unclear; It is a direct barrier to the business to provide certain assets classes.
Based on my experience and discussions with RIA executive teams, here are three obstacles of the critical, real -world world, which explain why many are on the borders.
What am I really trading?
Rias need legal clarity for what is marketed because their operational framework is built around traditional assets classes. A vague sign “Quasi-Sigur” does not shorten it. Until there is a final classification – something that can be processed, reported and stored in the same protocols used for securities – most councilors simply will not touch it.
Big Crypto likes to argue and give legal opinions on the status and classifications of its signs. However, RIA does not endanger their client relationships based on legal opinions, and RIA executive teams do not build businesses based on those thoughts. They will happily wait until such legal frameworks are written and codified in the law.
The party's risk of financial intermediaries
It is the best industry practice-effectively Cya for a partnership with properly licensed caregivers, intermediary traders and other financial intermediaries. According to the federal laws of securities, these entities must comply with the customer protection rule (Rule 15C3-3), which protect the customer's assets by asking broker traders to single out client funds and securities from them and return them immediately on request. While this does not eliminate all the risks associated with corruption or bankruptcy, partnership with entities undergoing these rules helps to mitigate potential concerns for RIA when you administer client assets and promote customer confidence.
Unfortunately, there is a lack of intermediaries registered in the Second US market, as most of the hereditary crypt platforms chose state licenses or money transmitter licenses-increasing much risk for most RIs and their clients.
Internal compliance policies and procedures
In any SEC Advisory Firm, strong internal compliance controls are primary. Councilors must demonstrate that they are not front clients, that all trade matches the obligations of trust, and that the records are easily audible. But cryptocurrency trades 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, creating a non -stop cycle that traditional compliance systems are not equipped to handle. Building and staff of a monitoring framework throughout the clock, integrating new registration tools and providing strong surveillance of developing markets is a massive enterprise. Until digital assets are a need to have, and not a pleasant thing, RIA will hesitate to invest in regulating the process and their internal compliance policies.
Reliable resources
To truly understand what the “regulatory concerns” mean, the survey practitioners should go directly to the professionals where it matters most – CIO, compliance officials and the operators of the operations of each new investment assets class. If a study does not capture their perspective, the results – as we have seen – mark an incomplete (and often overly optimistic) view of the feelings of councilors.
The next time a cryptocurrency study underlines the “regulatory concerns” as an input obstacle, dig deeper. What concern? Has the sponsor designed possible solutions? Councilors need clarification in the classification of assets, the opposite parties they can be supported by, and the internal proceedings of the guardian compliance, as an initial point for any crypt conversation. Until then faith, there is a demand for clients who will require any near time.