The government cannot take action against abuses of the various aid programs associated with the CARES Act without first identifying abuses. In a recent round of inquiries, FINRA sent requests to numerous individuals it has identified as having obtained aid under the CARES Act (e.g., the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL)). According to WealthManagement.com, a FINRA spokesperson has said that “FINRA is proactively looking at registered representatives that obtained loans through undisclosed outside business activities.”
Representatives are required to, at a minimum, notify their firms about their OBAs – if not also obtain written approval of them. FINRA’s use of public information about the PPP loans or the EIDL to flag certain representatives is an interesting approach to identifying and addressing a core requirement – the disclosure of representatives’ outside business activities.
