Firms Elect Three Industry Governors to FINRA Board of Governors, Two New Governors Appointed

WASHINGTON—The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced the results of voting that took place at its 2015 Annual Meeting today in Washington, D.C. In accordance with FINRA By-Laws, firms elected three Governors, one from among the small firms, one from among the mid-size firms and one from among the large firms. FINRA also named two new Governors to its Board of Governors.

Governors Elected

• Small Firm Governor: Joe Romano, President, Romano Wealth Management
• Mid-size Firm Governor: Brian Kovack, Esq., President & Co-Founder, Kovack Securities, Inc.
• Large Firm Governor: John W. Thiel, Head of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

All three Governors are newly elected.

Governors Appointed

Two individuals were named to the Board as Governors:

• Kathleen A. Murphy, President of Personal Investing, a Fidelity Investments company, was appointed as an Industry Governor; and
• Randal K. Quarles, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of The Cynosure Group, was appointed as a Public Governor.

Richard Ketchum, FINRA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Congratulations to the Governors. I welcome our newly elected Governors, John, Brian and Joe. They bring valuable perspectives and a keen understanding of the securities industry to FINRA's Board. I would also like to welcome Kathy and Randy, whose wealth of experience and expertise will help FINRA's Board move forward with our mission of protecting the investing public and ensuring the integrity of our markets."

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 Governors are appointed or elected to three-year terms and may not serve more than two consecutive terms.

FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, is the 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, and informing and educating 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 the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and firms. For more information, please visit www.finra.org.