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The Series 57 is the Securities Trader Representative Examination, a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority exam that qualifies you to execute trades in equity securities, preferred stocks, and convertible debt securities. It replaced the Series 55 Equity Trader exam in 2016. You cannot make investment recommendations to clients with this license. It qualifies you to sit at a trading desk and execute orders, not to advise.
Think of the Series 57 as the trader's license specifically for executing equity and convertible debt trades, rather than advising clients on what to buy.
Passing the Series 57 authorizes you to engage in Nasdaq trading, New York Stock Exchange trading, over-the-counter equity trading, and proprietary trading on behalf of a broker-dealer. Proprietary trading means trading the firm's own capital rather than on behalf of customers. The license covers equities, preferred stocks, and convertible debt securities specifically.
It does not authorize you to solicit securities transactions from or with customers, recommend investments, or engage in options trading without additional licenses.
The Series 57 exam consists of 50 scored questions and 5 unscored pretest questions, for a total of 55 items. You have 105 minutes to complete it. The passing score is 70%. You must also pass the Securities Industry Essentials exam as a corequisite before the Series 57 registration becomes effective.
The exam covers equity trading mechanics, market structure, order types, trade reporting, regulatory frameworks including Regulation NMS and Regulation SHO, clearing and settlement, and prohibited trading practices such as front-running and manipulation.
The Series 7 is a broader license covering a much wider range of activities and products, including client-facing securities sales, options, municipal securities, and government securities. The Series 7 does not replace the Series 57 if your firm specifically requires you to function as an equity trader. Similarly, holding a Series 57 does not replace the Series 7 if your role includes making investment recommendations to clients. Each license authorizes different activities, and some firms require both.
Traders at broker-dealers who execute transactions on equity trading desks take the Series 57. This includes both agency traders who fill customer orders and proprietary traders who trade the firm's own capital. The exam is also relevant for anyone supervising trading operations, though principal-level supervision of trading requires the Series 24 or Series 9/10 as well.
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