News Releases & Statements

Firms Will File Just Once to Report to Both Agencies WASHINGTON – The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) have announced a services agreement designed to ease reporting burdens and compliance costs for member firms. The new, simplified filing process will also reduce inconsistent or incomplete filing of annual audited financial statements and supplementary reports.  

WASHINGTON — Four firms have been censured and fined a total of $4.75 million for violations of various provisions of Rule 15c3-5 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (known as the Market Access Rule) and related exchange supervisory rules. The actions were taken by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), along with Bats, a CBOE Holdings company; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; the New York Stock Exchange; and their affiliated Exchanges (collectively, “Exchanges”). The firms involved in these matters are Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Citigroup Global Markets Inc., J.P.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has promoted Susan Schroeder to Executive Vice President and Head of Enforcement. In addition, FINRA plans to consolidate its existing enforcement functions into a new, unified enforcement group led by Schroeder. This consolidation is a result of FINRA360, the organization’s ongoing comprehensive self-evaluation and improvement initiative.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has released guidance to help securities firms implement a new rule requiring enhanced price disclosure to retail investors for trades in corporate and agency bonds. The new requirements go into effect May 14, 2018.

WASHINGTON — A new requirement for securities firms to report certain transactions in Treasury securities to FINRA was implemented successfully yesterday, providing regulators with a new tool to increase understanding and enhance surveillance of this bellwether market. The rule requires that FINRA member firms report secondary-market transactions in Treasury securities except savings bonds to TRACE, FINRA’s Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine.

Heyman to succeed Jack Brennan effective July 18 WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Board of Governors has unanimously elected as FINRA Chairman William H. Heyman, Vice Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of The Travelers Companies, Inc., effective July 18. Heyman earlier served as a member of the FINRA Board from January 2004 through September 2016.

Blockchain Symposium to Take Place in NYC on July 13 WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has established an Innovation Outreach Initiative to foster an ongoing dialogue with the securities industry that will help FINRA better understand financial technology (fintech) innovations and their impact on the industry.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Office of the Chief Economist today posted a new Research Note on liquidity in structured products, complementing an earlier report on corporate-bond liquidity.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that a FINRA hearing panel barred an Irvine, California-based registered representative, Jim Seol, for participating in private securities transactions, engaging in undisclosed outside business activities, and for making misrepresentations to his employer in compliance questionnaires. The hearing panel found that Seol sold $100 million in EB-5 investments promoted through his private business, Western Regional Center Incorporated (WRCI), yet failed to disclose this activity to his employing firm.

WASHINGTON — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has barred former Morgan Stanley Smith Barney registered representative John Batista Bocchino for concealing approximately $190 million in Venezuelan bond trades from the firm, which had restricted such trading due to the regulatory, anti-money laundering and reputational risks it posed. Instead, Bocchino continued to trade in Venezuelan bonds on behalf of his customers, but hid the trades from the firm by using several nominee accounts in the names of well-known U.S.