Raleigh, NC, Sept. 17, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RegEd, the leading provider of technology solutions for compliance for the financial services industry, announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire Arkovi, the award-winning social media solution for archiving and surveillance. The acquisition is expected to close in early October.
This acquisition allows RegEd to provide a new level of value in this emerging and critical area of compliance. Arkovi will be a core component of RegEd's Social Media and Communications Compliance offering.
Arkovi allows financial services firms to maintain a permanent record of their social media activity for both incoming and outgoing communications through an expansive, "always-on" archiving solution to maintain FINRA and SEC compliance. It is the only solution that supports all major social and web platforms including Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Blogs and websites. And, it delivers this across all devices - PC/Mac, tablets and smart phones - without the need to logon to a portal. The solution is built on a powerful platform and architected by senior compliance and technology professionals with deep experience in the financial services industry and will give organizations the most comprehensive and efficient solution for managing risks associated with social media by their advisors and employees.
Against a backdrop of increased regulatory scrutiny, advisors continue to expand their use of social media to actively engage a new generation of clients. With Arkovi, RegEd clients will have an innovative archiving and surveillance system with the flexibility to promote compliance across all social media outlets. This new module will be seamlessly deployed through RegEd's platform which already provides more than 500 firms and two million advisors and agents with enterprise level automation for insurance, SEC and FINRA compliance.
John M. Schobel, RegEd CEO, stated, "Our clients have been demanding an integrated solution for social media archiving that is focused on financial services and delivered by a proven and trusted provider. Arkovi and RegEd together provide the answer. Innovation is fundamental to Arkovi and combining this offering with RegEd's broadly-adopted suite of compliance applications provides a comprehensive and forward-looking solution for the marketplace."
Arkovi Founder Blane Warrene added, "Deep industry knowledge was the driving force behind our approach to automating the monitoring of social media. RegEd provides a perfect home for Arkovi because of its culture of innovation, regulatory expertise and extensive financial services client base. Personally, I am excited to become part of the most respected team in the industry and look forward to working with RegEd's clients to ensure that their advisors are able to achieve the success that our rapidly-changing communication environment offers. Even more exciting are the possibilities for what Arkovi's product will create when combined with the RegEd platform and vision ― our industry has seen nothing like it."
Financial services firms are already embracing the potential of social media. Ken Kaltman, COO for National Compliance Services, Inc. stated, "As a nationally recognized compliance consulting firm, NCS regularly assesses technology solutions that address regulatory problems. We have many satisfied customers who use both RegEd and Arkovi. This dynamic combination is ideal and will undoubtedly yield multiple benefits for the industry."
About RegEd
RegEd, a StoneRiver Inc. company, is a leading provider of technology solutions for compliance and risk management serving over 800 enterprise clients including 80 of the top 100 financial services firms. Established in 1994 by former regulators, the company is a recognized industry authority and has created the standard of excellence for rule-based compliance automation for broker-dealers, investment advisors, insurance companies and their distributors. Our client-driven solutions deliver superior operational efficiency and enable firms to cost-effectively comply with state and FINRA regulations while mitigating risks before they occur. For more information, please visit our website at: www.reged.com.