Many people, myself included, are of the view that FINRA today remains a self-regulatory organization in name only. For years now, FINRA has taken a series of actions decried by its member firms – new rules, new interpretations of old rules, zealous enforcement of rules, the imposition of punitive sanctions – who correctly complain that
broker-dealers
FINRA Knows Best – At Least According To FINRA – When It Comes To Hiring Decisions
By UB Greensfelder on
I don’t know how many times I’ve written about FINRA’s efforts over the years to address “rogue brokers,” or what it refers to nowadays more politically correctly as “high-risk brokers.” It doesn’t really matter what blog post you read, or when I wrote it, as they all tell essentially the same story: FINRA is just…
Reverse-Churning: BDs Are Damned If They Do, And Damned If They Don’t
By UB Greensfelder on
A couple of years ago, I blogged about the concept of “reverse churning,” i.e., putting a customer who trades only infrequently into a fee-based account, thus costing the customer a lot more than it would have cost that customer to be in a commission-based account. The reason this became a topic was, at the time,…
FINRA’s Stated Paradigm Shift On Enforcement Actions
By UB Greensfelder on
I have spoken about FINRA possibly putting an end to the policy of pursuing cases where formal disciplinary action serves little to no regulatory purpose. That welcome paradigm shift may be upon us.
This year, FINRA, in essence, pronounced that its “broken windows” strategy of pursuing Enforcement cases over the smallest and most technical violations…
Do FINRA’s Proposed MAP Rules Put PIABA’s Concern Over Money Ahead Of Fairness To Members?
By UB Greensfelder on
I have often used this forum to complain about FINRA’s lack of backbone when it comes to dealing with PIABA, the group of lawyers who represent customers of broker-dealers, principally in arbitrations. Over the years, FINRA has amended its rules time and again in response to loud claims by PIABA that the arbitration process is…
What Not To Wear (Or Do) At Your FINRA OTR
By Blaine Doyle on
I apologize for not posting anything recently, but, sadly, I was embroiled in a two-week arbitration that occupied most of my recent attention. I am home, however, and back in the saddle. In the meantime, here’s a post from Blaine Doyle, author of the classiest post ever in this blog, something about ancient Greece. I…
Expungement: Already An “Extraordinary Measure,” FINRA Now Seeks To Make It Even Less Accessible
By UB Greensfelder on
Expungement is a funny thing, and here’s why: for years, claimants’ counsel have complained loudly to FINRA that expungement was being granted too frequently, that legitimate customer complaints were disappearing from CRD, resulting in an unfair, sanitized representation of brokers’ records that put unsuspecting customers at risk. As Andrew Stoltmann, PIABA’s president, put it so…
Can FINRA Deliver On A Promise To Provide Meaningful Relief To Compliance Departments?
By UB Greensfelder on
As I have discussed before, there are some rule violations that are going to happen no matter what FINRA says about them, no matter how many Enforcement cases it brings, and no matter what BDs do to “detect and prevent” such violations. A prime example of such is outside business activities, or OBAs. The rule…
FINRA’s Exam Guidance Is A Big Yawn
By UB Greensfelder on
As promised, FINRA has released its first Report outlining common findings from its examinations, in an effort to help member firms comply with the rules and, presumably, avoid problems that other firms encountered. A noble idea, especially for an entity not exactly known (at least lately) for its proactive measures to assist BDs with their…
First Shot Fired In PIABA’s War On The Securities Industry
By UB Greensfelder on
A week or so ago, I highlighted in a post the acceptance speech of PIABA’s incoming president, Andrew Stoltmann, in which he announced his intent to wage “war” on the securities industry. Bluster aside, Andrew has been true to his word. His opening volley is an attack on the public governors who sit on FINRA’s…