The SEC currently has several notable rule proposals that have received public comment but have not yet been finalized. The potential direction of these proposals is likely to be influenced by the leadership of the new SEC...more
2/10/2025
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Capital Markets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Custody Rule ,
Digital Assets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Shareholder Proposals
On January 28, 2025, FINRA published its 2025 Annual Regulatory Oversight Report (the “Report”) as “an up-to-date, evolving resource or library of information for firms” that highlights specific industry trends, new...more
FINRA’s Office of Financial Innovation published a report on “The Metaverse and the Implications for the Securities Industry” to raise awareness among its member firms and the broader securities industry and seek industry...more
10/28/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Fraud ,
Information Reports ,
Market Participants ,
Metaverse ,
NASAA ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State Securities Regulators ,
Virtual Reality
On April 30, 2024, FINRA proposed amendments its Maintaining Qualifications Program (“MQP”) to reopen the period in which certain participants can complete their prescribed 2022 and 2023 continuing education (“CE”)...more
This amendment builds on FINRA’s recent willingness to relax the prohibition on the use of projections and targeted returns in the marketing materials broker-dealers deliver to institutional investors and qualified...more
2/29/2024
/ Affiliates ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Comment Period ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Institutional Investors ,
Internal Rate of Return (IRR) ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Offering Statements ,
Past Performance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Private Offerings ,
Private Placements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On January 23, 2024, FINRA announced the addition of new Supplementary Material .18 to FINRA Rule 3110 (Supervision) to adopt a voluntary, three-year remote inspections pilot program (Pilot Program) to allow eligible members...more
Firms will be able to treat private residences from which certain supervisory activity is conducted as non-branch offices instead of OSJs. The adoption comes after nearly two years of FINRA efforts to align its supervisory...more
High-frequency traders, private funds, decentralized exchange automated market makers, and even state pension plans should consider whether the expanded dealer definition triggers the need to register as a securities dealer...more
2/12/2024
/ Cryptoassets ,
Dealers ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Government Securities ,
Liquidity ,
Market Participants ,
Municipal Bonds ,
New Rules ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Registration Requirement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Traders
In January 2024, FINRA provided an update on its targeted examination of firms’ crypto asset communications. FINRA launched this targeted examination series in November 2022 to “review the practices of certain member firms...more
On January 9, 2024, FINRA published its 2024 Annual Regulatory Oversight Report (the “Report”). FINRA publishes the Report as a way to provide its broker-dealer members with insight into findings from FINRA’s Member...more
1/26/2024
/ Annual Reports ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cybersecurity ,
Electronic Communications ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form CRS ,
Regulation BI ,
Regulation SHO ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
FINRA has offered a gift to member firms and fund managers just in time for the holiday season — but like a new puppy, the gift comes with a lot of responsibility. FINRA filed a proposed rule change to amend FINRA Rule 2210...more
The SEC is continuing its campaign to overhaul cybersecurity, cyber incident reporting, and privacy controls and requirements for financial services industry registrants, their service providers, and corporate America...more
In April 2023, the SEC re-proposed amendments to Exchange Act Rule 3b-16 to expand the definition of what it means to be an exchange. When the SEC initially proposed these amendments in January 2022, there were zero direct...more
10/12/2023
/ Alternative Trading System (ATS) ,
Blockchain ,
Comment Period ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Dates ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Investment Contract ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Regulation
In Regulatory Notice 23-09, FINRA provides an update on actions it currently has under way to promote capital formation and the capital-raising process. FINRA also requests comment regarding whether there are other changes to...more
The SEC continues its overhaul of cybersecurity, cyber incident reporting, and privacy controls and requirements for industry registrants, their services providers, and corporate America generally.
On March 15, 2023, the SEC...more
4/14/2023
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Covered Entities ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Disposal Protocols ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Mutual Funds ,
Personal Information ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proposed Rules ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Regulation S-P ,
Safeguards Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sensitive Personal Information
Firms would be able to treat private residences as non-branch offices instead of OSJs under certain circumstances. FINRA hopes to align its supervisory rules with current work-from-home practices....more
Previously registered representatives who missed the prior deadline now have until December 31, 2023 to enroll.
Registered brokerage representatives historically had two years from their Form U5 filing date to...more
The SEC has settled several cases of improper celebrity crypto endorsements over the past several years. The most recent example involved NBA hall of famer Paul Pierce, also known as the “Truth.” The crux of the SEC’s...more
The 2023 priorities letter represents only a sliver of the topics firms can expect exam teams to cover this year. In developing the priorities, SEC staff noted their outreach directly to state securities regulators and...more
The risk alert highlights deficiencies the staff identified during examinations and provides examples of weak practices observed at firms. EXAMS staff intends for the alert to assist broker-dealers in reviewing and enhancing...more
On January 10, 2023, FINRA published the 2023 Report on FINRA’s Examination and Risk Monitoring Program. The Report serves as a resource for firms to use to bolster their compliance programs and provides a roadmap of FINRA’s...more
The SEC recently amended Exchange Act Rule 17a-4 by adopting new recordkeeping requirements for broker-dealers. Most notably, the SEC will no longer require broker-dealers to maintain records in “write once, read many” or...more
The SEC’s Fall 2022 “Reg Flex” agenda was recently published by the federal Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). Chair Gensler sets the agency’s agenda, which provides a glimpse into how the agency will...more
FINRA remains very focused on preventing financial exploitation of seniors and other investors. Firms can expect to see senior investor protection as a key area of focus in the forthcoming 2023 Report on FINRA’s Examination...more
FINRA recently provided an update on the August 2021 review of its members’ practices and controls related to the opening of options accounts and related areas, including account supervision, communications, and diligence. ...more