Answer: The firm.

## Explanation According to CFA Institute Standard V(C): Record Retention, **the firm** is primarily responsible for maintaining records that support investment actions, research reports, and other materials. ### Key Points: 1. **Standard V(C) Requirements**: The standard requires members and candidates to develop and maintain appropriate records to support their investment analysis, recommendations, actions, and other investment-related communications with clients and prospective clients. 2. **Firm Responsibility**: While individual employees (like research analysts) create and use these records, the ultimate responsibility for establishing and maintaining proper record retention policies and procedures lies with the firm itself. 3. **Chief Compliance Officer's Role**: The CCO oversees compliance with these policies but is not the primary party responsible for maintaining the records - that responsibility rests with the firm as an entity. 4. **Research Analysts' Role**: Analysts create research reports and investment recommendations, but they are not responsible for the firm's overall record retention system. 5. **Recommended Procedures**: CFA Institute's recommended procedures emphasize that firms should establish policies that specify the retention requirements for various types of records, ensure records are stored in a durable medium, and protect records from loss or destruction. Therefore, the firm is most likely responsible for maintaining the records that support investment actions, making option A the correct answer.

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