Defined terms relating to the trust and fiduciary activities exception from the definition of “broker.”
17 C.F.R. § 247.721
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01(a) Defined terms for chiefly compensated test. For purposes of this part and section 3(a)(4)(B)(ii) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(4)(B)(ii)), the following terms shall have the meaning provided:
(1) Chiefly compensated—account-by-account test. Chiefly compensated shall mean the relationship-total compensation percentage for each trust or fiduciary account of the bank is greater than 50 percent.
(2) The relationship-total compensation percentage for a trust or fiduciary account shall be the mean of the yearly compensation percentage for the account for the immediately preceding year and the yearly compensation percentage for the account for the year immediately preceding that year.
(3) The yearly compensation percentage for a trust or fiduciary account shall be
(i) Equal to the relationship compensation attributable to the trust or fiduciary account during the year divided by the total compensation attributable to the trust or fiduciary account during that year, with the quotient expressed as a percentage; and
(ii) Calculated within 60 days of the end of the year.
(4) Relationship compensation means any compensation a bank receives attributable to a trust or fiduciary account that consists of:
(i) An administration fee, including, without limitation, a fee paid—
(A) For personal services, tax preparation, or real estate settlement services;
(B) For disbursing funds from, or for recording receipt of payments to, a trust or fiduciary account;
(C) In connection with securities lending or borrowing transactions;
(D) For custody services; or
(E) In connection with an investment in shares of an investment company for personal service, the maintenance of shareholder accounts or any service described in paragraph (a)(4)(iii)(C) of this section;
(ii) An annual fee (payable on a monthly, quarterly or other basis), including, without limitation, a fee paid for assessing investment performance or for reviewing compliance with applicable investment guidelines or restrictions;
(iii) A fee based on a percentage of assets under management, including, without limitation, a fee paid
(A) Pursuant to a plan under § 270.12b-1;
(B) In connection with an investment in shares of an investment company for personal service or the maintenance of shareholder accounts;
(C) Based on a percentage of assets under management for any of the following services—
(1) Providing transfer agent or sub-transfer agent services for beneficial owners of investment company shares;
(2) Aggregating and processing purchase and redemption orders for investment company shares;
(3) Providing beneficial owners with account statements showing their purchases, sales, and positions in the investment company;
(4) Processing dividend payments for the investment company;
(5) Providing sub-accounting services to the investment company for shares held beneficially;
(6) Forwarding communications from the investment company to the beneficial owners, including proxies, shareholder reports, dividend and tax notices, and updated prospectuses; or
(7) Receiving, tabulating, and transmitting proxies executed by beneficial owners of investment company shares;
(D) Based on the financial performance of the assets in an account; or
(E) For the types of services described in paragraph (a)(4)(i)(C) or (D) of this section if paid based on a percentage of assets under management;
(iv) A flat or capped per order processing fee, paid by or on behalf of a customer or beneficiary, that is equal to not more than the cost incurred by the bank in connection with executing securities transactions for trust or fiduciary accounts; or
(v) Any combination of such fees.
(5) Trust or fiduciary account means an account for which the bank acts in a trustee or fiduciary capacity as defined in section 3(a)(4)(D) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(4)(D)).
(6) Year means a calendar year, or fiscal year consistently used by the bank for recordkeeping and reporting purposes.
(b) Revenues derived from transactions conducted under other exceptions or exemptions. For purposes of calculating the yearly compensation percentage for a trust or fiduciary account, a bank may at its election exclude the compensation associated with any securities transaction conducted in accordance with the exceptions in section 3(a)(4)(B)(i) or sections 3(a)(4)(B)(iii)-(xi) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(4)(B)(i) or 78c(a)(4)(B)(iii)-(xi)) and the rules issued thereunder, including any exemption related to such exceptions jointly adopted by the Commission and the Board, provided that if the bank elects to exclude such compensation, the bank must exclude the compensation from both the relationship compensation (if applicable) and total compensation for the account.
(c) Advertising restrictions—(1) In general. A bank complies with the advertising restriction in section 3(a)(4)(B)(ii)(II) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(4)(B)(ii)(II)) if advertisements by or on behalf of the bank do not advertise—
(i) That the bank provides securities brokerage services for trust or fiduciary accounts except as part of advertising the bank's broader trust or fiduciary services; and
(ii) The securities brokerage services provided by the bank to trust or fiduciary accounts more prominently than the other aspects of the trust or fiduciary services provided to such accounts.
(2) Advertisement. For purposes of this section, the term advertisement has the same meaning as in § 247.760(h)(2).
Source: eCFRURL: https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2024-07-01/title-17.xmlFetched: 7/26/2026