Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory

Mixed Results for FINRA’s Disciplinary Actions in First Half of 2017

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A midyear analysis of the disciplinary actions reported by FINRA from January through June 2017 indicates:

  • Certain program areas and restitution are up, but fines and the number of disciplinary cases are significantly down
  • FINRA appears to be focusing on more “nuts and bolts” issues like trade reporting, record retention, and supervisory policies and procedures
  • Despite an overall reduction in fines and the number of disciplinary actions, firms should still concentrate on core issues like suitability and books and records, among others

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Additional contributor to this post:

Brian L. Rubin, brianrubin@eversheds-sutherland.com

 

Compliance, Regulatory, Standard of Care

Securities: Top Five Unclaimed Property Issues

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While securities have long been a hot spot for unclaimed property issues, the past several years have seen a continued expansion of audit activity targeting broker-dealers, stock issuers, transfer agents, mutual funds, banks, and others in the financial services industry. Unclaimed property laws—and unclaimed property audits—can present a number of specific challenges in this space.

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Additional contributors to this post:

Holly H. Smith, hollysmith@eversheds-sutherland.com

Mary Jane Wilson-Bilik, mjwilson-bilik@eversheds-sutherland.com

 

 

Compliance, Regulatory, Standard of Care

Fourth Set of FAQs from DOL on Fiduciary Rule

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On August 3, 2017, the Department of Labor released a fourth set of FAQs related to its new “investment advice” fiduciary definition and related exemptions, which became applicable on June 9. Like the May FAQs, the three new FAQs are positioned as transition period guidance, although their content is not so limited.

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Additional contributor to this post:

W. Mark Smith, marksmith@eversheds-sutherland.com

 

Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory, Standard of Care

A Record-Breaking Year for FINRA in 2016; What May Come in 2017?

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2016 will be remembered as an historic year: the Olympics, the Chicago-Cleveland World Series, and the presidential election. In the regulatory world of FINRA, there was also an historic year as FINRA continued its trend of ordering significant fines, shattering its
previous record set in 2014. If firms and their representatives were not paying attention to this trend, they should be now. Although some have speculated about a reduction in the SEC’s Enforcement program with the new administration, FINRA shows no signs of slowing down. By analyzing FINRA’s 2016 sanctions and cases, including the issues that resulted in the most significant fines and emerging enforcement trends, what predictions can we make about key issues for FINRA for 2017 and beyond?

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Additional contributor to this post:

Brian L. Rubin, brianrubin@eversheds-sutherland.com

Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory

FINRA Holds Regulator Forum on Distributed Ledger Technology

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FINRA recently held a Blockchain Symposium which included a Regulator Forum with representatives from FINRA, OCC, CFTC, the Federal Reserve  and the SEC.  The regulators discussed the work they have undertaken to assess the use of DLT in the financial services industry, and the regulatory considerations associated with potential uses of DLT. The Symposium follows FINRA’s publication of a report earlier this year discussing the implications of DLT for the securities industry and soliciting comments from market participants.

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Additional contributor to this post:

Issa J. Hanna,  issahanna@eversheds-sutherland.com