Attentive readers will recall that a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned in a preface to great post from Chris about expungement becoming an endangered creature due to changes in FINRA rule that I was about to embark on a two-week FINRA Enforcement hearing, all done by Zoom, by consent. I promised to provide some
UB Greensfelder
SEC’s Reg BI Roundtable Round-up
By UB Greensfelder on
On October 26, the SEC hosted a roundtable discussion during which the SEC and FINRA shared some of their observations about how firms are doing implementing Regulation Best Interest. If you missed the live presentation, it was recorded and is available here.
The discussion covered a lot of topics and, in some instances, simply…
FINRA AWC Provides New Defense To Allegation Of “Willfulness”
By UB Greensfelder on
I dare you. In fact, I double-dog dare you to figure out how or why FINRA decides to charge willfulness in some cases but not in others. Bottom line is that it is nearly impossible (except if you’re a big firm, in which case you can rest easy that FINRA will manage to skip the…
The Trouble With Texts
By UB Greensfelder on
Having completed my Enforcement hearing conducted by Zoom – more about that in an upcoming post – I can finally turn my attention back to some matters that arose while I was busy.
One that stood out for the sheer (and frightening) universality of its lesson is an SEC settlement entered into by Jonestrading Institutional…
Fourth Circuit Opinion Reveals A Fundamental Problem With The Arbitration Process (A Problem That PIABA Exploits): Arbitrators Need Not Do Their Job Well, Or Even Correctly
By UB Greensfelder on
As the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals made clear a week or so ago, serving as a FINRA arbitrator seems rather apropos in a world where the score is not kept in kids’ baseball games (to avoid there being any “losers”), and where adults receive medallions celebrating the fact that they are “participants” in…
Federal Judge Rules That While Zoom Arbitrations Are “Clunkier,” They Are Not Unfair
By UB Greensfelder on
Carlos Legaspy is a respondent in a FINRA arbitration that was scheduled to go to hearing in August. As with all other FINRA cases, it was subject to a sweeping administrative decision by FINRA to postpone all in-person hearings through the summer, due to the pandemic. As I have noted before, that decision imbued…
FINRA Membership Statistics Demonstrate The Continuing Demise Of Small BDs, And The Accompanying Rise Of IAs
By UB Greensfelder on
Posted in Annual Report, FINRA
For the third year, FINRA has published its now-annual (apparently) statistical accounting of its membership and the registered representatives who work for those firms. I went back and looked the blogs I posted after the 2019 report and the 2018 report, and, predictably (and somewhat sadly), the same trends continued last year as I…
Two — No, Make That Three — FINRA AML Settlements Drive Home The Point: When It Comes To Supervision, Actions Speak Louder Than Words
By UB Greensfelder on
Right after I posted this, FINRA announced a third AML settlement, this time with Interactive Brokers. It was no small deal: it came with a $15 million fine and an obligation to retain an independent consultant. (In addition to the FINRA AWC, Interactive simultaneously entered into settlements with the SEC — with another $11.5…
FINRA ♥ Rule 8210
By UB Greensfelder on
I hope that you have had the chance to enjoy Jessica Hopper’s paean to Rule 8210 in her recent blog posted on FINRA’s website. Very disturbing, and for all the old reasons.
First, once again, she starts by patting herself – well, not just herself, I guess, but Enforcement generally – on the back for…
Goodbye Suitability, Hello Best Interest. But What Does That Mean, Practically Speaking?
By UB Greensfelder on
After having proudly served for decades, and surviving a dramatic face-lift in 2012 (when old NASD Rule 2310 was replaced by shiny new FINRA Rule 2111), it seems that the “suitability rule,” as we’ve come to know it, has, at long last, been quietly sent out to pasture by FINRA. Although the title of Reg…