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Nancy Condon (202) 728-8379
George Smaragdis (202) 728-8988

 

Two New Public Governors Appointed to FINRA Board of Governors, FINRA Creates New Investor Committee

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has named two new public Governors — Dr. Brigitte C. Madrian and Dr. Luis M. Viceira — to its Board of Governors. Dr. Madrian, the Aetna Professor of Public Policy and Corporate Management at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Dr. Viceira, the George E. Bates Professor at the Harvard Business School, will join the Board in January 2014. Governors are appointed or elected to three-year terms and may not serve more than two consecutive terms. FINRA today also announced the creation of a new Investor Issues Committee to advise FINRA staff on matters that significantly affect individual and institutional investors.

Dr. Madrian's current research focuses on behavioral economics and household finance, with a particular focus on household saving and investment behavior. Her work in this area has impacted the design of employer-sponsored savings plans in the U.S. and has influenced pension reform legislation both in the U.S. and abroad.

Dr. Viceira is an award-winning researcher interested in the study of asset allocation strategies for long-term investors, both individuals and institutions, capital markets, with an emphasis on the Treasury bond market and the term structure of interest rates, and household finance. He is the author of numerous Harvard Business School case studies on the management and organization of institutional investors.

FINRA's newly created Investor Issues Committee will become active in January 2014 and will advise senior staff at FINRA on proposed rulemaking, policy initiatives and other issues that significantly impact both retail and institutional investors. The Committee will also help inform FINRA's economic analysis from the perspective of investors. Investor Issues Committee members will include:

  • Brandon Becker, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, TIAA-CREF;
  • James Choi, Associate Professor of Finance, Yale School of Management;
  • Roger Ganser, Chairman, BetterInvesting; Founder and Managing Director, Venture Investors LLC
  • Lawrence Greenberg, Chief Legal Officer, The Motley Fool;
  • Catherine L. Heron, former Senior Vice President and Senior Counsel, Fund Business Management Group, Capital Research and Management Company;
  • Mark Ready, Department Chair for Finance, Investments and Banking & Academic Director of the Hawk Center for Applied Security Analysis, University of Wisconsin School of Business;
  • Barbara Roper, Director of Investor Protection, Consumer Federation of America;
  • Paul F. Roye, Senior Vice President, Fund Business Management Group, Capital Research and Management Company;
  • Nancy M. Smith, Corporate Secretary and Chief Integration Officer, AARP;
  • Elisse Walter, former Chairman, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; and
  • Stephen L. Williams, former Senior Special Advisor to the Director, Trading and Markets, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

"On behalf of the Board, I would like to welcome our two new Public Governors, Brigitte Madrian and Luis Viceira. Brigitte's expertise in behavioral economics and Luis' focus on asset allocation and capital markets will bring valuable perspectives to FINRA's Board as we pursue our mission to protect investors and ensure market integrity," said Richard Ketchum, FINRA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "I am eager to work with our new Investor Issues Committee, which will help FINRA better understand the needs and protect the interests of the investing public."

FINRA is overseen by a 24-person Board of Governors, with 13 seats held by Public Governors and 10 by Industry Governors. FINRA's CEO has the remaining seat.

FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services. FINRA touches virtually every aspect of the securities business – from registering and educating all industry participants to examining securities firms, writing rules, enforcing those rules and the federal securities laws, informing and educating the investing public, providing trade reporting and other industry utilities, and administering the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and firms. For more information, please visit www.finra.org.