FINRA Board Meeting Update

March 05, 2025

Features
  • FINRA Board Meeting Update 
    In its first meeting of the year, the FINRA Board of Governors last week elected a new Chair, approved the allocation of prior-year fine monies to various capital initiatives, discussed a proposed Outside Activities rule, and discussed modifying TRACE reporting rules to reduce compliance burdens. It was announced that Eric Noll is stepping down as Chair to pursue an opportunity that would conflict with his role as a Public Governor. To succeed him, the Board elected Scott A. Curtis, who has served as a Governor and Large Firm Representative since 2023. 
     
  • 2025 GASB Accounting Support Fee Announced 
    FINRA on Tuesday published Regulatory Notice 25-03, which outlines the accounting support fee to adequately fund the annual budget of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB). FINRA will assess and collect a total of $17,298,100 to fund GASB’s budget by collecting $4,324,525 from member firms each calendar quarter beginning in April. Firms are reminded that if they choose to pass along the fee to customers, they must ensure proper disclosure. 
     
  • Podcast on Avoiding Financial Fraud 
    As we observe National Consumer Protection Week, listen to the latest episode of the FINRA Unscripted podcast to hear about the ways in which investors can protect themselves from financial scams. On this episode, Rob Mascio, Director of the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, talks about the latest fraud trends, common red flags to watch out for and practical steps investors can take to safeguard investments. 
     
  • Military Spouse Fellowship Application Period Announced 
    The FINRA Investor Education Foundation and the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education announced they are accepting applications for the 2025 class of FINRA Foundation Military Spouse Fellows, which offers eligible military spouses the opportunity to earn the Accredited Financial Counselor® (AFC®) certification. Prospective candidates have until April 15 to apply online. 
     
  • Investor Insight Article on How to Read Brokerage Statements 
    In a recent Investor Insight, FINRA provided a look at the information a brokerage statement might include and what to keep in mind when checking for errors or signs of a problem. The article is available here, and firms are welcome to share it and other FINRA Investor Insights with customers.
Guidance, Upcoming Deadlines, Effective Dates
New
Reminders
  • Comment on Proposed Changes to Corporate Financing: Members and other stakeholders have until March 20 to comment on proposed amendments that would make substantive, organizational and terminology changes to FINRA Rules 5110 (Corporate Financing Rule—Underwriting Terms and Arrangements), 5121 (Public Offerings of Securities With Conflicts of Interest) and 5123 (Private Placements of Securities). 
     
  • Four New Forms in FINRA Gateway: Visit FINRA’s website for more information about the new forms that are now available in FINRA Gateway. The compliance date for using them is March 31. 
     
  • Amendments to FINRA Rule 3240: Updates to FINRA’s Borrowing From or Lending to Customers Rule go into effect April 28 to strengthen the general prohibition against borrowing and lending arrangements between registered representatives and their customers, narrow some exceptions, modernize the “immediate family” definition, and more.
Disciplinary Actions
  • FINRA publishes disciplinary actions to remind members of specific conduct that violates FINRA rules and may result in disciplinary action. The February 2025 Monthly Disciplinary Actions are available here.
Education and Compliance Programs
Virtual Registration Systems Foundation | March 12-13 | Virtual Event
 
2025 FINRA Annual Conference | May 13-15 | Washington, DC | Hybrid Event
 
Small Firm Conference | Oct. 9-10 | Dallas, TX | Hybrid Event
Resources
Member Firm Hub – The latest guidance, resources, educational opportunities and more.
 
Membership Application Program (MAP) Tools – Guidance and other resources to help current members prepare for their continuing membership application (CMA) and new applicants prepare for a new member application (NMA).
 
FINRA Unscripted – A biweekly podcast that discusses a range of topics important to the securities industry.
 
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About FINRA
FINRA is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to investor protection and market integrity. FINRA regulates one critical part of the securities industry—member brokerage firms doing business with the public in the U.S. FINRA, overseen by the SEC, writes rules, examines for and enforces compliance with FINRA rules and federal securities laws, registers broker-dealer personnel and offers them education and training, and informs the investing public. In addition, FINRA provides surveillance and other regulatory services for equities and options markets, as well as trade reporting and other industry utilities. FINRA also administers a dispute resolution forum for investors and brokerage firms and their registered employees. For more information, visit www.finra.org.
Regulatory Contacts
FINRA By-Laws require member firms to maintain an email account on behalf of their executive representatives, to facilitate firm notification of important information. In light of this, requests from executive representatives to be removed from this email list cannot be honored.
 
Firms wishing to change the name or email address of their executive representative or designated assistant should use the FINRA Contact System: http://www.finra.org/FCS.
 
Subscribers
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