This month’s securities enforcement article uses the television show “The Crown” as its primary source of inspiration in memory of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who died on April 9, 2021; in awe of Oprah’s timing, interviewing skills, ability to get an interview; and out of respect for the Queen, “Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith,” and the Prime Ministers who served under her. Please note that, as far as we know, “The Crown” did not involve investments in securities. . . Nonetheless, the Netflix television show does involve rules and codes of conduct; intrigue and misdirection; punishment and praise; drama and comedy; and good and evil.
Monthly Archives: June 2021
FINRA’s diversity and inclusion efforts
FINRA has recently taken steps to advance diversity and inclusion in the broker-dealer industry, including issuing Regulatory Notice 21-17, on April 29, 2021, seeking comments. FINRA stated that it is committed to supporting diversity, inclusion and equal opportunity efforts by the industry. The request for comment noted that regulatory agencies such as FINRA have an opportunity to evaluate how their rules and actions may have unintended disparate impacts on those within the industries they regulate and how they may unintentionally impede diversity and inclusion. In connection with these efforts, FINRA requested comments by June 28, 2021 “on any aspects of our rules, operations and administrative processes that may create unintended barriers to greater diversity and inclusion in the broker-dealer industry or that might have unintended disparate impacts on those within the industry.” Subsequently, on May 20, 2021, FINRA chair, Eileen Murray, participated in a virtual fireside chat at FINRA’s Annual Conference with FINRA CEO, Robert Cook, during which Ms. Murray discussed her hopes to see more accountability and standardization in the reporting of diversity and inclusion efforts within firms in the industry, and that tying executive compensation to diversity goals would make a “world of difference.”