A brokerage statement is the periodic account report your investment firm sends showing your holdings, trades, cash balances, dividends, interest, and fees for a set period. Federal rules require firms to send one at least once every calendar quarter for any account that held a security position, carried a cash balance, or had activity during that quarter.1FINRA.org. 2231 Customer Account Statements It is your primary record for tracking performance, catching errors, and pulling together the numbers you need at tax time.
What Appears on the Statement
The first page carries an account summary with the opening and closing balances for the period. These balances must appear prominently on the front, alongside the identity of the clearing firm (if it differs from your broker) and customer service contact information.2U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Notice of Filing of a Proposed Rule Change to Amend FINRA Rule 2231 Customer Account Statements Your account number is printed here too.
Below the summary, the statement lists your current holdings: individual stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, and other securities. Each position typically shows market value and the number of shares or units. Many firms include CUSIP numbers, the standardized identifiers assigned to each security, so there is no ambiguity about what you own.1FINRA.org. 2231 Customer Account Statements
A transaction history logs every buy, sell, and transfer during the period, with the execution date and price per share. Dividends and interest paid to you are itemized separately, showing the issuing security and the date the money was credited to your cash balance. Reading through this section is how you confirm that trades match your instructions and that your allocation still looks the way you expect.
SIPC Disclosure
Your statement must disclose that the clearing firm is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.2U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Notice of Filing of a Proposed Rule Change to Amend FINRA Rule 2231 Customer Account Statements SIPC protects your account if the brokerage firm fails financially, covering up to $500,000 in missing securities and cash, with a $250,000 limit on the cash portion.3SIPC. What SIPC Protects It does not cover investment losses from market declines. It covers assets that disappear because the firm goes under.
Margin Account Disclosures
If you trade on margin, meaning you borrow from your broker to buy securities, the statement carries extra disclosures required by federal rule.4eCFR. 17 CFR 240.10b-16 Disclosure of Credit Terms in Margin Transactions You will see your debit balance at the start and end of the period, each debit and credit during the period, and the average debit balance (or each balance) on which interest was figured. You will also see total interest charged, the dates each interest period ran, the annual rate applied, and any other fees tied to the credit. A separate disclosure describes the lien your broker holds on the securities pledged as collateral and the conditions under which the firm can demand more.
How Often Statements Arrive
Quarterly is the federal minimum for any account with a position, cash balance, or activity.1FINRA.org. 2231 Customer Account Statements Many firms send monthly statements when there is frequent trading, but that is a firm decision rather than a rule. Accounts carried on a delivery-versus-payment or receive-versus-payment basis are generally exempt from the quarterly requirement.
Paper mail used to be the default. FINRA’s Board has approved allowing firms to make electronic delivery the default, as long as they notify you and offer paper as an alternative.5FINRA.org. Facilitating E-Delivery While Preserving Investor Choice You can revoke consent to electronic delivery at any time and go back to paper.6U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 7Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 409, Capital Gains and Losses It also records the holding period, which controls the tax treatment. A security held one year or less produces a short-term gain taxed at your ordinary income rate. A security held more than one year produces a long-term gain, which may qualify for a lower capital gains rate. Short-term and long-term transactions are reported separately on Schedule D.8Internal Revenue Service. 2025 Instructions for Schedule D Form 1040
Your monthly and quarterly statements are the running record. The official tax forms come separately. Your broker must send Form 1099-B (proceeds from sales) and Form 1099-DIV (dividend income) by February 15 of the year after the tax year.9Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1099-B The 1099 figures are what you carry over to Schedule D; the statements are how you check them and reconstruct anything the 1099 does not fully explain.
How Long to Keep Them
The IRS’s general rule is three years from the date you filed the return. Investment records need a longer horizon because you need the original cost basis whenever you eventually sell. The IRS advises keeping records related to property, including investments, until the statute of limitations runs out for the year you dispose of the property.10Internal Revenue Service. How Long Should I Keep Records In practice: hold purchase records for as long as you own the investment, and then at least three years after you sell.
Two situations stretch that timeline. If you claim a loss on a worthless security, keep the records for seven years. If you underreport income by more than 25 percent of the gross income shown on your return, the IRS can look back six years, so keep records accordingly.
Your firm has its own retention duties. Federal rules require brokers to preserve customer account statements for at least three years, with the first two easily accessible, and to keep records tied to opening and maintaining the account for at least six years after the account is closed.11eCFR. 17 CFR 240.17a-4 Records to Be Preserved by Certain Exchange Members, Brokers and Dealers That is a floor for the firm, not a substitute for your own copies.
If Something Looks Wrong
Every statement must include a notice telling you to report any inaccuracy or discrepancy promptly.1FINRA.org. 2231 Customer Account Statements If you see an unfamiliar transaction, a missing dividend, or a balance that does not add up, call your broker right away and ask about anything you did not authorize. If the answer is unsatisfactory, escalate to the branch manager or compliance department. Put a serious complaint (unauthorized trading, missing funds) in writing and keep copies. Confirming any oral communication in writing protects your rights under the Securities Investor Protection Act.
If the firm will not resolve it, you can file a complaint with FINRA’s Investor Complaint Center.12FINRA.org. File a Complaint FINRA also offers two dispute resolution paths. Arbitration is a streamlined proceeding in which member firms are required to participate and independent arbitrators issue a final, binding decision. Mediation is voluntary; a neutral mediator helps the parties negotiate a settlement, and every party has to agree to take part.13FINRA.org. Arbitration and Mediation
Ignoring Statements Has a Cost
If you stop opening statements and lose contact with the firm, the account can eventually be treated as dormant. After a period of inactivity, generally three to five years depending on state law, the firm may be required to hand your assets to the state as unclaimed property through escheatment.14FINRA.org. Avoiding and Recovering Unclaimed Investment Assets You can usually reclaim the money through the state’s unclaimed property office, but the process takes time, and your investments may have been liquidated first. Reading your statements when they arrive, and responding when the firm tries to reach you, is the simplest way to keep that from happening.