# Company filings and regulatory registers

> Find SEC EDGAR filings, ESMA registers and the FCA Register. Learn which source answers company-disclosure, legal-entity and permission questions.

Canonical HTML: [https://orbitrum.io/resources/official-sources/](https://orbitrum.io/resources/official-sources/)

Choose the source that matches the fact you need to establish. Company filings describe disclosures by an issuer. Regulatory registers describe records maintained for particular activities and jurisdictions. A disclosure, a permission and an investment judgment are different things.

Official-source navigation for US filings, EU/EEA registers and UK financial-services records; not a worldwide legal-status checker.

Documentation consulted: 2026-10-09

## Choose the research question first

| Question | Resource | Important boundary |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What did a reporting company disclose? | [SEC EDGAR](/resources/official-sources/sec-edgar/) | Read the relevant issuer, form and reporting period |
| Where is the appropriate EU firm or market record? | [ESMA registers](/resources/official-sources/esma-registers/) | Select the specific register and, when needed, the national authority |
| What does the UK regulator record about a firm? | [FCA Register and Firm Checker](/resources/official-sources/fca-register/) | Examine the current status and the service concerned, not only a name match |

### ESMA registers
A guide to navigating a family of resources: investment firms, prospectuses, instrument references, national disclosure stores and MiCA information. Select the database before drawing a conclusion from its results. [ESMA register directory](#source-es1)

[Navigate ESMA registers](/resources/official-sources/esma-registers/)

### FCA Register and Firm Checker
A guide to the full Financial Services Register and the simplified consumer tool. It highlights the difference between finding a record and establishing the current permission for a particular service. [FCA Register documentation](#source-fc1)

[Use the FCA Register and Firm Checker](/resources/official-sources/fca-register/)

### SEC EDGAR
A guide to locating a company's filings, choosing the relevant form and recording the original document reference. It also points to the SEC's official structured-data documentation. [SEC investor guide](#source-sc1)

[Find company filings with EDGAR](/resources/official-sources/sec-edgar/)

## Keep the original context with the source

When saving a document for research, record its publisher, legal entity or issuer, document type, date or period, URL and the passage relevant to your question. This is a suggested research note, not a regulatory form or a new Orbitrum account feature.

Do not turn 'a record exists' into 'all services are authorised', or 'a filing is public' into 'the investment is endorsed'. For instance, the FCA explicitly says its Firm Checker cannot determine that compensation or ombudsman protection will definitely apply. [FCA Firm Checker limitations](#source-fc2)

## Sources and expert assessments play different roles

This library helps locate evidence. [Orbitrum Academy](/academy/) explains methods for examining it. Project assessments and comparisons remain the work of their named authors, whose reasoning and scope should be read alongside the source material.

Continue with the [platform documentation guides](/resources/platforms/) when your question is about a provider's tools, pricing documents or product-search instructions rather than an issuer filing or regulatory record.

## Sources and scope

<a id="source-sc1"></a>
### Using EDGAR to Research Investments

Publisher: US Securities and Exchange Commission
Type: Official educational guide
Published/updated: 2018-09-04
Consulted: 2026-10-09
Official source: https://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/edgarguide.htm

Scope: Used for stable distinctions between filing types and amendments. Old numerical thresholds and phased implementation statements are not reproduced.

<a id="source-es1"></a>
### Databases and Registers

Publisher: European Securities and Markets Authority
Type: Official register directory
Published/updated: Date not consistently stated; live documentation
Consulted: 2026-10-09
Official source: https://www.esma.europa.eu/publications-and-data/databases-and-registers

Scope: Different purposes of investment-firm, prospectus, instrument, national disclosure and MiCA resources. Not a single universal register.

<a id="source-fc1"></a>
### Financial Services Register

Publisher: Financial Conduct Authority
Type: Official register documentation
Published/updated: 2026-02-13
Consulted: 2026-10-09
Official source: https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/financial-services-register

Scope: Current and historical records, permissions, individuals, warnings and appointed representatives. Record presence alone is not a current authorisation conclusion.

<a id="source-fc2"></a>
### FCA Firm Checker

Publisher: Financial Conduct Authority
Type: Official consumer tool documentation
Published/updated: Date not consistently stated; live documentation
Consulted: 2026-10-09
Official source: https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/fca-firm-checker

Scope: Consumer-service checking and information omitted from the simplified tool, including no definitive FSCS/FOS protection determination.

## Related resources

- [Broker and crypto-platform documentation](https://orbitrum.io/resources/platforms/)
- [Orbitrum Academy](https://orbitrum.io/academy/)