About a month ago, the SEC announced a settlement in a modest little case that has, nevertheless, managed to garner a lot of attention. This is a result of the fact that one of the respondents was the CCO, i.e., the Chief Compliance Officer, of the co-respondent RIA. Determining the particular circumstances under which CCOs
Alan Wolper
Alan focuses his practice exclusively on defending regulatory investigations and enforcement actions brought by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), and state securities commissioners against brokers, broker-dealers, and investment advisors. He was previously Director of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) Atlanta District Office, where he oversaw nearly 600 member firms and thousands of branch offices. Alan also served as a member of the NASD's Department of Enforcement, where he had the primary responsibility for prosecuting hundreds of formal disciplinary actions.
Equitable’s Settlement With The SEC Demonstrates That A Single Customer Complaint Can Serve As Notice Of A Systemic Issue
Last week I posted a blog about the dangers of not heeding findings made during a regulatory exam, at least findings of clear, undisputable compliance issues that cannot be meaningfully defended. Today I am writing to highlight a corollary rule: if one customer points out the existence of a real problem, again, a clear problem…
Barclays AWC Teaches Important Lessons About The Price To Pay For Not Heeding Exam Findings
There is no question in my mind that the quality of FINRA examiners is a bit uneven. Some are smart and insightful and helpful; others are, well, not. Most of the time, they do know what they’re talking about. That means the opportunity to make legitimate arguments against exam findings can, at least sometimes, be…
When It Comes To GPB, FINRA Looks At Things Quite Differently Than The SEC And The DOJ
Among the criticisms I have leveled against FINRA are (1) that it is increasingly acting like a claimant’s arbitration attorney, by taking every possible opportunity to blame member firms for losses incurred by investors when other palpable reasons for those losses exist, and (2) that it loves, well after the fact, to jump in on…
The 411 On FINRA Rule 4111
Well, Memorial Day is just past us, so we all know what that means: it’s time for FINRA to conduct its first annual assessment of its member firms to determine whether they should be branded a “Restricted” firm under new Rule 4111, with all the benefits and privileges appurtenant thereto. Given that it’s pretty clear…
FINRA’s Fixation On Unpaid Arbitration Awards Has Morphed Into Something More Dangerous
Shortly, I hope to get around to drafting a blog post about FINRA’s latest demonstration of abasement to PIABA and claimants’ counsel everywhere, namely new Rule 4111. But, that rule is such a monstrosity that it will take a little time to parse, and a lot of work to get the post shorter than ten…
More Thoughts On The Age Of FINRA Arbitrators
Not too long ago, I wrote a piece complaining about (among other things) the fact that the potential arbitrators that FINRA rolled out to the parties in a particular arbitration I was handling skewed juuuuuuust a bit towards the older end of the age spectrum; indeed, the average age of the ten potential chairpersons was…
Lack Of Diversity In FINRA Arbitration Panels, Or, How Many Old, White Guys Does It Take To Hear A Case?
Let me say at the outset that I, myself, am an old (by most people’s definition, anyway), white man. So, selfishly, I’ve got nothing against old, white men. But, the fact is that FINRA arbitration panels are disproportionately populated by such guys. And I am not sure that’s a good thing for the arbitral process. …
When It Comes To Paying Commissions Only To Registered Persons, You Can’t Do Indirectly What You Can’t Do Directly. Or Can You?
Let’s talk about commissions today. Or, as they are sometimes referred to, transaction based compensation. Specifically, who can receive commissions. Actually, that’s not phrased correctly. The correct phrasing of this issue, courtesy of FINRA Rule 2040, would be: to whom a broker-dealer may legally pay commissions? According to that rule, BDs can only pay…
FINRA Continues To Turn Its Back On Its Members By Failing To Pass A Popular Rule
There are certain topics that broker-dealers have been encountering for decades, yet continue unnecessarily to wrestle with due to the absence of clear guidance from the regulators. I have written about one such topic before, and that’s the fuzzy line between most outside business activities, which RRs are obliged (at a minimum) by rule to…