# Best interest

> Acting in your best interest means putting your interests ahead of the professional's own, but the legal duty behind the phrase depends on whether the person is acting as a broker or as an investment adviser.

Canonical page: https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/best-interest/
Also called: best interest standard, acting in your best interest

For a broker, it means Regulation Best Interest: when recommending a security, an investment strategy or an account type to a retail customer, the broker must act in the customer's best interest without placing its own financial or other interest ahead. The duty attaches to each recommendation.

For an investment adviser, it is part of the fiduciary duty under the Investment Advisers Act: a duty of care and a duty of loyalty across the whole advisory relationship, including full and fair disclosure of conflicts. CFP professionals also commit to a fiduciary duty when they give financial advice.

Because both use the same words, "I always act in your best interest" doesn't tell you which standard applies. Ask in which role the person is advising you, and how they are paid for it.

## How to check

Read the firm's Form CRS, which must state its standard of conduct under the Fees, Costs, Conflicts, and Standard of Conduct heading. Then check FINRA BrokerCheck and the SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure site to see whether the person is registered as a broker, an adviser, or both.

## Sources

- [SEC: Regulation Best Interest, Small Entity Compliance Guide](https://www.sec.gov/info/smallbus/secg/regulation-best-interest)
- [Investor.gov: Investment advisers](https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/getting-started/working-investment-professional/investment-advisers)
- [CFP Board: Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct](https://www.cfp.net/ethics/code-of-ethics-and-standards-of-conduct)

## Related terms

- [Fiduciary](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/fiduciary.md)
- [Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI)](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/reg-bi.md)
- [Suitability](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/suitability.md)
- [Form CRS](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/form-crs.md)
- [Dual registrant](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/dual-registrant.md)