May 2021 Board Update

FINRA’s Board of Governors met on May 18 and 19, when it approved FINRA’s 2020 Annual Financial Report, approved a proposal to adopt term limits for members of FINRA’s advisory committees, and approved a proposal to reallocate the fees for Regulatory Element continuing education.

May 26, 2021

FINRA’s Board of Governors met virtually last week, and I am pleased to share some updates from our discussions.

The Board approved FINRA’s 2020 Annual Financial Report, which—for the first time—will include a section on human capital describing the diversity of our workforce and Board of Governors. We expect to publish the report early this summer.

The Board also approved a FINRA proposal to adopt membership term limits for our advisory committees that currently do not have them. With this approval, members of our advisory committees will now serve a maximum of two three-year terms, with an additional three-year term for chairpersons and the potential for an additional one-year extension for members on a limited basis. The adoption of these term limits was a recommendation of our Racial Justice Task Force to facilitate greater diversity on these committees and improve opportunities for those who are interested in serving.

In addition, the FINRA Board approved a reallocation of the fees for the Regulatory Element of FINRA’s continuing education (CE) program. At our December 2020 meeting, the Board approved a proposal to require registered persons to complete the Regulatory Element of the CE program every year rather than every three years; the proposal the Board approved last week adjusts the fees from $55 every three years to $18 per year to conform with the proposed annual CE requirement. The revised schedule and fee change must be filed with the SEC before going into effect.

Our next Board of Governors meeting is July 21-22. More information regarding the Board's operations, including the membership and responsibilities of its committees, is available at www.finra.org/governance.

Sincerely,

Robert W. Cook
President and CEO