The Securities Division of the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) regulates securities activities in Kentucky. Securities are financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds and other investment vehicles. If you have questions about whether a specific product is a security, please contact us.
The Securities Division oversees the following industries and individuals:
Broker-Dealers
Broker-Dealer Agents
Investment Advisers
Investment Adviser Representatives
Issuer Agents
Securities Registrations
Securities Exemptions
In addition to registering securities offerings and the people who sell them, the Securities Division also:
Examines firms and individuals
Investigates complaints and suspicious activity
Provides educational materials and outreach to protect consumers from investment fraud
The division has three branches: Licensing and Registration, Compliance and Enforcement.
Licensing and Registration Branch
The Licensing and Registration Branch registers professionals who sell securities, and it registers securities offered and sold in Kentucky.
Compliance Branch
The Compliance Branch conducts on-site examinations of broker dealers, agents and investment advisers. DFI examiners perform hundreds of examinations annually across Kentucky to ensure that securities firms and entities comply with the Securities Act of Kentucky KRS 292, also known as the Blue Sky laws.
Enforcement Branch
The Enforcement Branch works closely with the Office of Legal Services to ensure that the state’s securities laws are enforced through administrative or court actions.
Financial Exploitation Referral
If you are a financial institution as defined in KRS 365.245, or a broker dealer or investment adviser as defined in KRS 292.310, and wish to file a financial exploitation referral with the Division of Securities, please click here.
Note: If you are not a financial institution, broker dealer, or investment adviser as described above, please complete the consumer complaint form. To access the consumer complaint form, please click here.
