Guidance
We offer guidance to firms in the form of podcasts, webinars, FAQs, reports, and more. Use the toggle below to find guidance by topic, type or date.
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Media Center
As a self-regulatory organization, information sharing is key to FINRA's pursuit of its mission of investor protection and market integrity, and no single resource is a better example of that than FINRA's Annual Regulatory Oversight Report. On this episode, we hear from four leaders within FINRA's Member Supervision department to discuss highlights from the 2024 report.
January 09, 2024
Arbitration and Mediation
The Neutral Corner – Volume 4—2023
December 29, 2023
FAQ
Q1. Who can offer or sell securities under Regulation Crowdfunding? A1. Regulation Crowdfunding allows eligible issuers1 to offer and sell securities through the platform of a broker-dealer or funding portal that is both registered with the SEC and a FINRA member (an “intermediary”). This activity must be conducted exclusively through the platform of a single intermediary. A firm cannot act as an intermediary if it is not a registered broker-dealer or a registered funding portal, and is not a member of FINRA.
December 20, 2023
Guidance
With the holiday season upon us and 2023 coming to an end, FINRA’s Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) would like to remind member firms to prepare for cyber threats and attacks that may occur around the holidays. Member firms and their vendors should consider reviewing and validating their Written Supervisory Procedures (WSPs), continuing to educate their employees with respect to cybersecurity and effective practices, and testing incident response plans (IRPs) to prepare for, prevent, or recover from an incident.
December 12, 2023
Guidance
FINRA’s Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) is highlighting an Okta data breach spanning from September 28 to October 17, 2023 that impacts Okta customer support system users. Okta reported that threat actors downloaded names and email addresses, along with other relevant metadata, of their customer support system users. The information could be leveraged in phishing or other social engineering attacks and potentially lead to the targeting of firm personnel in an Okta administrator or customer support role.
December 11, 2023
Guidance
The prevalence of cybersecurity incidents continues to increase at FINRA member firms. As a result of the continued proliferation of cybercrime, the Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) within FINRA’s Member Supervision program is issuing this advisory to highlight effective practices and considerations for member firms when responding to cyber incidents, including the benefits of voluntarily reporting information related to the incident to various entities.
November 30, 2023
Guidance
Due to increased reports related to cyber incidents occurring at FINRA member firms which have been attributed to specific threat actors, the Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) within FINRA’s Member Supervision Program is highlighting a recent joint Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Cybersecurity Advisory published on November 16, 2023, which may be updated as new intelligence is uncovered.
November 17, 2023
Guidance
FINRA is highlighting recently reported vulnerabilities that impact Citrix NetScaler services including NetScaler ADC and NetScaler Gateway. Threat actors can exploit these vulnerabilities to exfiltrate sensitive information and to infect data and systems with ransomware. These Citrix services are typically used in support of internet-based application systems, to balance and manage incoming requests, and to enhance security and resiliency.
November 10, 2023
Report / Study
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Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics that deals with the complex properties of atoms and sub-atomic particles.2 Quantum computing leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to solve problems too large or complex for traditional computers.
October 30, 2023
Guidance
This notification is to warn member firms of an ongoing phishing campaign that involves fraudulent emails purporting to be from FINRA and using the domain name “@rfs-finra.org”.
October 13, 2023
FAQ
Effective October 16, 2023, FINRA revised Rules 12800 and 12805 of the Code of Arbitration Procedure for Customer Disputes (Customer Code) and Rule 13805 of the Code of Arbitration Procedure for Industry Disputes (Industry Code) relating to the expungement of customer dispute information from the Central Registration Depository (CRD®). These frequently asked questions provide guidance regarding these rules.
October 12, 2023
FAQ
The following questions and answers provide guidance regarding the operation of FINRA Rule 2080, which was formerly NASD Rule 2130.
October 12, 2023
Guidance
FINRA poses several questions for firms to consider as they evaluate whether their supervisory systems are reasonably designed to address risks of their SPAC-related activities. These questions are based on FINRA’s observations to this point in our review. In addition, the Appendix notes additional guidance FINRA has provided regarding member firms’ relevant obligations.
October 02, 2023
Arbitration and Mediation
The Neutral Corner - Volume 3—2023
September 29, 2023
Guidance
The Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) within FINRA’s Member Supervision program is highlighting the new SEC rules on Cybersecurity Risk Management, Strategy, Governance, and Incident Disclosure that were adopted on July 26, 2023. The SEC adopted final rules requiring disclosure of material cybersecurity incidents on Form 8-K and periodic disclosure of a registrant’s cybersecurity risk management, strategy and governance in annual reports.
September 21, 2023
Media Center
In this third and final episode in our series covering FINRA's ongoing crypto asset regulatory work, we hear from FINRA's Blockchain Lab, which serves as a central point within FINRA for the development of blockchain-related regulatory initiatives to learn about how the Lab is supporting and advancing FINRA's regulatory work involving crypto assets.
September 19, 2023
Media Center
In this second episode of a three-part series covering FINRA's crypto asset-related regulatory work, we hear from FINRA's Crypto Asset Investigations Team. This dedicated group of investigators specialize in conducting complex crypto asset investigations and share more about the crucial role it plays in ensuring compliance with existing rules and regulations in the crypto asset space.
September 05, 2023
Guidance
FINRA is highlighting a recent joint Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Cybersecurity Advisory published on August 30, 2023, which may be updated as new intelligence is uncovered.
August 31, 2023
Guidance
FINRA is highlighting a recent Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Flash published on August 23, 2023. According to the FBI Flash, all exploited Barracuda Email Security Gateway (ESG) appliances, even those with up-to-date security patches, remain at risk for continued computer network compromise from threat actors exploiting a zero-day vulnerability documented in CVE-2023-2868.
August 28, 2023
Guidance
Summary
FINRA has adopted amendments to its Codes of Arbitration Procedure (Codes) to modify the process relating to requests to expunge customer dispute information in the FINRA Dispute Resolution Services (DRS) arbitration forum.
August 11, 2023
Media Center
In 2022, FINRA developed an enterprise-wide strategy to ensure it is prepared for an evolving crypto asset regulatory landscape and created the Crypto Hub, the Blockchain Lab and the Crypto Asset Investigations Team. On this episode, the first in a three-part series, we learn more about the strategy and the role of the Hub.
August 08, 2023
Board of Governors Meeting
During its July 12 and 13 meeting, the FINRA Board of Governors Re-elected Eric Noll as chair, re-appointed public governors Deborah Bailey, Lisa Fairfax and Maureen Jensen, and approved three rulemaking items.
July 19, 2023
Arbitration and Mediation
The Neutral Corner - Volume 2—2023
July 06, 2023
Guidance
FINRA Rule 4230(a) requires clearing firms for which FINRA is the designated examining authority pursuant to SEA Rule 17d-1 to submit requests for extensions of time as contemplated by Regulation T of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Regulation T) and SEA Rule 15c3-3(n) to FINRA for approval.
June 30, 2023