The finance compliance guide

This guide explains the rules behind every finance booking on Videoster, with the source for each. It is information, not legal advice: each company and creator remains responsible for its own compliance, and a company’s own counsel decides what applies to it.

Last checked 28 October 2026.

Rules by topic

What each rule requires, and what Videoster does about it.

Paid promotion of a security

SEC §17(b)

Anyone paid to describe a security must disclose that they were paid, who paid and the amount. No intent to mislead is needed for a breach. The disclosure page adds the form of pay, the creator’s holdings declaration and the check result.

What it requires: The payer and the amount and form of the pay, stated in the content
What Videoster does (automatic): A fixed disclosure line filled in with the real payer and amount, in the video’s language first and then English; the description’s first line is checked automatically, and a failed check holds the payment
What it does not do: Can’t see or hear the video, and doesn’t review what the creator says

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)

Endorsements

FTC Endorsement Guides

A material connection between a creator and a company must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously, in the language of the content, where viewers will notice it — not only at the end, in small print or behind a link.

What it requires: Clear disclosure, in the video’s language, where viewers will see it
What Videoster does (automatic + signed): Required in three places: on screen or spoken at the start (signed by the creator, with a screenshot), first line of the description, YouTube paid-promotion label (both checked automatically)
What it does not do: Whether a particular disclosure is clear enough is the company’s counsel’s judgement

Source: 16 CFR Part 255 (revised 2023)

Inside information

MNPI, Rule 10b-5

Trading on, or passing on, material non-public information is fraud. Most briefing processes have no step where someone signs that a brief holds none; on Videoster, checkout records that signature.

What it requires: The company shares only public information
What Videoster does (signed): Signed affirmation at checkout, recorded with the email and time; the creator commits to use only public information
What it does not do: Can’t read the company’s unreleased information: the affirmation is a signed statement, not a scan

Source: Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5

Selective disclosure

Regulation FD

A listed company may not disclose material information to selected people before the public. A creator paid to talk about the company is one of those people, in any language and live as much as recorded.

What it requires: No material information shared with one audience before the public
What Videoster does (signed): The same affirmation; earnings-night formats start only after the results are published
What it does not do: Whether information is material is the company’s counsel’s call

Source: Regulation FD, 17 CFR Part 243

Offerings and IPOs

Quiet periods

Promoting an offering before and while it is registered is restricted, separately from any disclosure failure. Videoster doesn’t take bookings from a company in an offering quiet period.

What it requires: No promotion while an offering is under way
What Videoster does (signed): Asked at checkout: a company in a quiet period cannot book; “unsure” is recorded and shown to the creator before they confirm
What it does not do: Doesn’t calculate the window or decide whether one applies

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §5; Rules 163A and 174

Trading around the video

Scalping

Trading ahead of what you publish about a company can be fraud. The no-trade window is Videoster’s default; no rule sets a number of days.

What it requires: The creator doesn’t trade the stock around the content
What Videoster does (signed): Holdings declared on confirming and shown on the disclosure page; no-trade window from 30 days before to 30 days after publishing
What it does not do: Can’t see a creator’s brokerage accounts; there is no trade surveillance

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(a); Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5

Company trading windows

Blackout periods

No law sets an earnings quiet period. Companies set their own windows, and theirs may be stricter than Videoster’s default.

What it requires: Timing that respects the company’s own policy
What Videoster does (automatic): With a next earnings date, a booking that would publish in the 14 days before it is refused at checkout, and the publish date is checked against that window
What it does not do: Knows only the earnings date given at checkout; other windows in the company’s policy are not known

Source: The company’s own policy; 14 days is Videoster’s default, not a legal figure

False or misleading statements

Anti-fraud

Statements about a security must not be false or misleading. The more a company shapes what a creator says, the more the content becomes the company’s own statement — which is why approval covers facts and disclosure only.

What it requires: Nothing false or misleading, by statement or omission
What Videoster does (recorded): The company approves facts and disclosure and can flag a figure with its public source; it can’t edit the creator’s wording, which keeps the video the creator’s own view
What it does not do: No review of opinions, forecasts or the video’s content

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(a); Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5

Rules where the creator lives

Local advertising and advice rules

Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore have their own advertising-label and investment-advice rules, on top of the US rules.

What it requires: Advertising labels, and a licence to advise on securities in some countries
What Videoster does (information): Shows the creator the rules for their country, with sources, in the studio and the room; the disclosure check reads paid labels in nine languages
What it does not do: Doesn’t decide whether a creator needs a licence; the rules are information, not legal advice

Source: See “Rules where the creator lives”

Keeping a record

Recordkeeping

What it requires: Proof of what was agreed, approved and published
What Videoster does (recorded): An append-only record of every signature, approval, check and payment, kept for seven years; an exportable evidence pack and CSV; a public disclosure page for every paid video
What it does not do: Records are never edited, only redacted for a verified erasure request

Source: Videoster’s record policy (Terms §9)

Each rule says how Videoster handles it — automatically, by a signed statement, as a record, or as information — and what it does not do. Videoster provides the workflow, the records and the checks. It is not a broker-dealer, an investment adviser or a law firm, and gives no legal or investment advice; each company and creator remains responsible for its own compliance.

Rules where the creator lives

US rules everywhere, and local rules on top.

On top of the US rules, the country a creator lives in can have its own rules on labelling advertising and on advising about securities.

Everywhere

US rules apply wherever the creator and the viewers are, because the company is listed in the United States: the video states that it is paid, who paid, and the amount and form of the pay.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)

Japan

Paid content must say clearly that it is advertising, where viewers will see it — for example 広告, PR or プロモーション. Hidden advertising (“stealth marketing”) is prohibited.Source: Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, art. 5(3); Cabinet Office Notice No. 19 of 2023 (in force 1 October 2023); Consumer Affairs Agency operating guidelines
Giving investment advice for pay requires registration as an investment advisory business. Don’t tell viewers to buy or sell the company’s shares.Source: Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, arts. 28(3) and 29

South Korea

The paid relationship must be stated in Korean at the start of the content (the title or the opening) and, in a video, more than once — for example 유료 광고 or 광고.Source: Korea Fair Trade Commission, Guidelines on the Review of Endorsement and Testimonial Advertising (amended 1 September 2020, guidance updated 2024)
Paid investment advice to the public requires reporting as a quasi-investment advisory business. Don’t tell viewers to buy or sell the company’s shares.Source: Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act, art. 101

Taiwan

A sponsored endorsement must disclose the sponsorship — for example 付費合作 or 業配.Source: Fair Trade Commission guidance on endorsement advertising (對於薦證廣告之規範說明), under Fair Trade Act arts. 21 and 25
Advising on securities for pay requires a licence, and the Financial Supervisory Commission applies this to finance influencers. Don’t recommend buying or selling the company’s shares.Source: Securities Investment Trust and Consulting Act, arts. 4 and 107; Financial Supervisory Commission guidance on finance influencers (2023)

Hong Kong

Advising on securities is a licensed activity (Type 4). The SFC has warned that influencers who promote securities for pay may need a licence. Present facts, not recommendations.Source: Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571), s. 114 and Schedule 5; Securities and Futures Commission statements on finance influencers

Singapore

Advising others on investment products needs a licence or an exemption. Present facts, not recommendations.Source: Financial Advisers Act, s. 6
Commercial ties must be disclosed clearly in social media content.Source: Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore, Guidelines on Interactive Marketing Communication & Social Media

United States

A material connection with the company must be disclosed clearly, where viewers will notice it.Source: FTC Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, 16 CFR Part 255 (revised 2023)
Paid promotion of a security must state that it is paid, who paid, and the amount and form of the pay.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)

Other countries

Check whether your country requires paid content to be labelled as advertising, and whether commenting on securities for pay needs a licence. Present facts, not recommendations.Source: Your country’s advertising and financial regulators

Shown for information, with the source for each rule, as checked on 19 October 2026. This is not legal advice: whether a rule applies to you, and whether you need a licence, is for you and your own adviser to decide.

The disclosure line

One line, in the video’s language and in English.

Every paid video carries one disclosure line as the first line of its description: the menu’s publishing language first, then English, then the link to the video’s disclosure page. An English-language menu gets English only. If the line would run past about 150 characters, the English part is shortened to the payer and the amount; the original-language part and the link never are. The disclosure check passes when the original-language part — the paid label, the payer, the amount — and the link are in the first line; it checks the English part and reports it if it is missing, but that alone doesn’t fail the check.

Menu language	First line of the description
English	Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Chinese (Traditional)	付費合作：本影片由 Northwind Semiconductor 支付 US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Chinese (Simplified)	付费合作：本视频由 Northwind Semiconductor 支付 US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Japanese	【広告】広告主：Northwind Semiconductor、報酬：US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Korean	[유료 광고] 광고주: Northwind Semiconductor, 대가: US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Vietnamese	Quảng cáo có trả phí: Northwind Semiconductor đã trả US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Thai	โฆษณา (ได้รับค่าตอบแทน): Northwind Semiconductor จ่าย US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Malay	Kerjasama berbayar: Northwind Semiconductor membayar US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA
Indonesian	Kerja sama berbayar: Northwind Semiconductor membayar US$5,400 / Paid partnership: Northwind Semiconductor paid US$5,400 · videoster.com/d/7KQ2M9XA

What the line has to say

The amount is required. “Sponsored” on its own doesn’t meet §17(b), and a disclaimer only behind a link is generally not enough.
Videoster’s check reads the original-language part for that language’s paid label exactly as in the line (for example 付費合作, 【広告】, Kerja sama berbayar; spaces inside it are ignored), the company and the amount written as a US$ figure. Other words that local rules may accept, such as 業配 or 广告, don’t pass the check, and neither does an amount written in words.
The amount is what the creator receives for this order, and the form is cash, paid through a licensed provider. Both are on the disclosure page.
The line is a fixed template with the order’s figures filled in. The company’s own counsel decides whether it is enough for them.

On screen or spoken, at the start

In the video’s language: required. English as a second line: recommended, not required.

Show it, or say it, within the first 5 seconds or before the company is first mentioned, whichever comes first.
Keep an on-screen caption up for at least 5 seconds.
Make it large and high-contrast enough to read on a phone. A caption only at the end, or in small print, does not count.

YouTube’s paid promotion label

Turn it on: YouTube Studio → the video’s details → Paid promotion → “My video contains paid promotion”.

Quiet periods and timing

Videoster’s defaults, and where they come from.

Where the law leaves the number of days to the company, Videoster applies its own defaults. Each is listed with where it comes from. A company’s own policy may be stricter.

Offering or IPO quiet period

A company that answers “yes” at checkout can’t book. “Unsure” is recorded and shown to the creator before they confirm.

Videoster’s own rule. US law restricts promoting an offering before and while it is registered, and the windows companies commonly use come from two SEC rules: a 30-day safe harbour before filing and a 25-day prospectus-delivery period after an exchange listing. Videoster doesn’t calculate the window; the company answers, and its counsel decides whether one applies.

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §5; Rule 163A; Rule 174(d)

The 14 days before results

With a next earnings date, a booking that would publish in the 14 days up to it is refused, and the publish date is checked against that window.

Videoster’s own default. No law sets an earnings quiet period: companies set their own in their disclosure or insider-trading policy, often closing before the period ends and reopening shortly after results. 14 days is a common shape, not a legal figure. A company’s own policy may be stricter, and Videoster only knows the date entered at checkout.

Source: Company practice; no statute or SEC rule

Earnings-night formats

The results date must fall between the start and the publish date, and the stream starts only after the results are published.

Follows from the rule against selective disclosure: figures can be discussed only once they are public.

Source: Regulation FD

The creator’s no-trade window

The creator declares any holding and doesn’t trade the company’s shares or derivatives from 30 days before the collaboration until 30 days after the video is published.

Videoster’s own default. Trading ahead of what you publish about a company (“scalping”) can be fraud; no rule sets a number of days. A company’s own policy may ask for a longer window.

Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(a); Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5

Windows companies commonly use

For reference only. Whether a quiet period applies, and for how long, is the company’s counsel’s call.

Event	Window	Basis
Initial public offering	30 days before to 25 days after listing	25 days after listing is the Rule 174(d) prospectus-delivery period for exchange-listed securities. The 30 days before is the Rule 163A safe harbour for pre-filing communications, used as a conservative default; it is not a statutory quiet period.
Follow-on offering	30 days before pricing	No statutory day count applies to a seasoned company’s follow-on offering, and Rule 174(b) generally relieves the prospectus-delivery obligation for a reporting company. Both figures are conservative placeholders for a company’s own policy.
Earnings or results	15 days before to 1 day after the results date	Entirely a company’s own practice; no rule sets an earnings quiet period. The company’s own disclosure policy governs.

Inside a window

Treat anything that would publish inside the window as needing your counsel’s sign-off before you book it.
Forward-looking statements, guidance, and anything not already in a filed document are the highest-risk content in a window.
A video can move into a window if its date slips. On Videoster the publish-by date is in the order agreement.
Regulation FD applies throughout: nothing shared with a creator may be material and non-public, inside or outside a window.

Outside a window

Content built entirely from already-filed documents, with no new information added.
Videos whose publish date falls wholly outside the window, subject to your own policy.
Ordinary factual corrections, though these are still subject to Rule 10b-5.

Situations

Which rules matter, by situation.

Which rules matter most depends on the situation, and on who is paying — never on the creator’s category. Each situation lists the formats that cover it, the rules that apply, and an optional extra statement a creator or the company’s counsel can adapt. Videoster fills in only the disclosure line.

Ongoing investor awareness

Offered as the formats listed.

Regular coverage of one company rather than a one-off campaign.

Formats: Company deep-dive, Technology explainer, Annual report walkthrough, Shorts pack, Investor day coverage, Site visit

The video states that it is paid, who paid, and the amount and form of the pay — every time.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)
The disclosure is in the language the video is published in, not only added in English.Source: FTC Endorsement Guides, 16 CFR Part 255
Only information the company has already made public is shared or used.Source: Regulation FD, 17 CFR Part 243

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

All information in this video comes from [Company]’s public filings and published materials. No non-public information was provided to me.

Earnings and results

Offered. Checkout applies the 14-day rule and, for earnings night, needs the results date.

Videos timed around a reporting date.

Formats: Earnings-night live reaction, Quarterly series

Nothing about the results before they are published: not the figures, the guidance or any part of them.Source: Regulation FD
No misleading statement or omission about the results, including in how they are framed.Source: Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

This video discusses [Company]’s results for [period], published on [release date]. Every figure cited is taken from the filed release. No forward-looking guidance beyond what the company has already published is included.

Management and executive interviews

Offered as the formats listed.

A named executive on camera, live or recorded.

Formats: Live Q&A with management, Podcast episode

Regulation FD applies to a live answer as it is given: an unscripted answer can be a selective disclosure, and it can’t be taken back.Source: Regulation FD
What the executive says on camera is the company’s own statement and must not be misleading.Source: Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5
Any review before publishing is what the package’s workflow sets, agreed in writing at booking. A creator doesn’t have to offer more.Source: The order agreement

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

[Executive name], [role] of [Company], appears in this video. Statements made by the company’s representative are the company’s own. Nothing said here is intended to convey information that is not already public.

Reaching holders in another language

Offered. The disclosure line is in the video’s language first, then English.

Coverage in the languages a company’s retail holders actually read.

Formats: Your IR video, in Mandarin, any format from a creator who publishes in that language

US securities law applies wherever the video is published or watched, because the company is US-listed.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)
Publishing in another language doesn’t make a selective disclosure allowed.Source: Regulation FD
Local rules can apply as well as US rules. The company’s counsel decides, market by market.Source: Local advertising and securities rules (see “Rules where the creator lives”)

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

This disclosure is made in the language of this content. [Company] is listed in the United States and is subject to US securities law wherever this content is published or watched.

Response to a market event

Not offered: Videoster has no format for it, because a fast paid response is where these rules are most often missed.

Correcting the record when a report, rumour or price move is being discussed.

Every corrective statement must be accurate and complete, with no misleading omission.Source: Exchange Act §10(b) and Rule 10b-5
No coordinated activity meant to move the price or volume. That is market manipulation, however accurate the underlying claim.Source: Exchange Act §9(a)(2) and §10(b)
A paid response needs the same disclosure as any other paid video.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)
A correction may not introduce material non-public information.Source: Regulation FD

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

This video responds to [event]. The corrective statements here are drawn from [Company]’s public filings and public statements. I was not asked to make any claim about the share price and make none.

IPO and listing

Not offered: a company in an offering or IPO quiet period can’t book on Videoster, and creators are paid in cash only.

Coverage while a company is coming to market.

Promoting an offering before it is registered is its own violation, separate from any disclosure failure.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §5
If a creator is paid in shares, whether they are restricted changes what the creator may do and must disclose.Source: Securities Act Rule 144
The disclosure states the amount and form of the pay, including when the pay is shares.Source: Securities Act of 1933, §17(b)

Optional extra statement, for counsel to adapt

[Company] is [offering status]. This video is not an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any security. Any offering is made only by prospectus.

What Videoster does, and what it does not

A tool with stated limits.

What Videoster does

The creator signs the disclosure commitment before publishing a menu; the Compliance-ready mark shows that signature and its date.
Checkout asks for the ticker and exchange, the next earnings date and the offering quiet-period answer, and records the company’s signed affirmation that it shares no material non-public information.
It refuses a booking from a company that answers “yes” to an offering quiet period, and one that would publish in the 14 days before the earnings date given.
The creator declares holdings and signs the no-trade window when confirming the order.
It fills in the disclosure line with the order’s payer and amount, in the video’s language first and then English, and shows the creator the rules for their country.
Once the video is live it checks the description’s first line, YouTube’s paid promotion label and the publish date; the creator signs for the on-screen disclosure with a screenshot. A failed check holds the payment.
It publishes a disclosure page for every paid video and keeps an append-only record of every signature, approval, check and payment, exportable as CSV and as a printable evidence pack.
A licensed payment provider holds the money; Videoster never does.

What it does not do

Watch or listen to the video, or review what a creator says. The company approves facts and disclosure; opinions stay the creator’s.
Read briefs or materials for inside information. The affirmation is a signed statement, not a scan.
Decide whether a quiet period, a blackout or any rule applies to a company, or whether a creator needs a licence.
Know trading windows the company hasn’t entered, or watch anyone’s trading. There is no trade surveillance.
Determine whether FINRA Rule 2210 applies to a communication.
Give legal or investment advice, or guarantee any result. Videoster is not a broker-dealer, an investment adviser or a law firm.

Sources

Where each rule comes from.

Securities Act of 1933, §5, §17(a) and §17(b); Rules 144, 163A and 174
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, §9(a)(2) and §10(b); Rule 10b-5
Regulation FD, 17 CFR Part 243
FTC Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, 16 CFR Part 255 (revised 2023)
FINRA Rule 2210 (communications with the public)
Japan: Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, art. 5(3); Cabinet Office Notice No. 19 of 2023 (in force 1 October 2023); Consumer Affairs Agency operating guidelines
Japan: Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, arts. 28(3) and 29
South Korea: Korea Fair Trade Commission, Guidelines on the Review of Endorsement and Testimonial Advertising (amended 1 September 2020, guidance updated 2024)
South Korea: Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act, art. 101
Taiwan: Fair Trade Commission guidance on endorsement advertising (對於薦證廣告之規範說明), under Fair Trade Act arts. 21 and 25
Taiwan: Securities Investment Trust and Consulting Act, arts. 4 and 107; Financial Supervisory Commission guidance on finance influencers (2023)
Hong Kong: Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571), s. 114 and Schedule 5; Securities and Futures Commission statements on finance influencers
Singapore: Financial Advisers Act, s. 6
Singapore: Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore, Guidelines on Interactive Marketing Communication & Social Media

Information, not legal or investment advice. Videoster is not a broker-dealer, investment adviser or law firm. Last checked 28 October 2026.

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