Rule 17a-4 Compliance for Algorithmic Trading and Robo Advising Software

We are seeing an increased regulatory focus on the preservation of trading and robo advising algorithms. For instance, if a robo advisor advises a particular purchase, the code behind that recommendation needs to be retained and available if called upon by a regulator. Software developers have systems but often the question as to what code was running at a specific time and the non-erasable evidence of the 'chain of custody.' It is now incumbent upon the compliance department to make sure that the software developers adhere to corporate preservation policies.