Financial Gatekeepers and Investor Protection: Evidence from Criminal Background Checks
研究发现，有犯罪记录的金融顾问更可能引发客户投诉、仲裁赔偿和大额和解，且客户更易遭遇服务中断，而雇佣这些顾问的基金公司并未提供更高收益或更低费用，表明犯罪记录是评估风险的重要事前特征。
ABSTRACT We examine whether financial advisors with pre‐advisor criminal records pose a greater risk to investors than those without. We find that financial advisors with pre‐advisor criminal records are more likely to receive future customer complaints. Their complaints are more likely to receive arbitration awards or settlements and are more likely to involve large settlements exceeding $100,000. Finally, clients are more likely to suffer service disruptions from engaging advisors with pre‐advisor criminal records, even incremental to the brokerage firm being high‐risk. Although we do not have performance data of individual advisors, mutual funds of those firms that employ advisors with criminal records do not provide their clients with superior returns nor charge lower fees, suggesting that there are not compensating benefits to offset the investor harm. Overall, pre‐advisor criminal record serves as an important ex ante characteristic available to regulators, investors, and employers for risk‐assessment purposes.