LPL, Raymond James Caught in SEC's Messaging Probe

Raymond James said that while it's cooperating, the broker-dealer "may contest liability and/or the amount of damages, as appropriate, in each pending matter," adding "there can be no assurance that material losses will not be incurred from claims that have not yet been asserted or are not yet determined to be material."

Industry trade groups are raising concerns about an ongoing sweep by the SEC of advisors' off-channel communications, including text messaging and other electronic communications.

Wells Fargo disclosed in late February that regulators were investigating its retention of employee communications over unapproved messaging apps.

The SEC announced charges last September and $1.1 billion of fines affecting 15 broker-dealers and one affiliated investment advisor, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission imposed $710 million in penalties on 11 financial institutions over employees routinely communicating about business matters using text messaging applications such as WhatsApp on their personal devices.

Combined with JPMorgan's $200 million regulatory fine, which regulators announced in December, the total level of penalties over these record-keeping lapses stands at $2.01 billion.