On-Site Review Program (OSR)

FINRA or FINRA Administrator will conduct comprehensive on-site reviews of internal and external Vendors on a periodic basis. The purpose of the On-Site Review program is to ensure that market data Vendors are in compliance with the terms and conditions of their Vendor Agreement. FINRA will review data Vendors to verify that they are in compliance with FINRA's Usage Reporting Policy and Data Administration Policies.

 

Background

 

The On-Site Review Program provides data Vendors with the opportunity to meet face-to-face with staff and discuss their current and proposed BTDS and ATDS data products. At each review, the Vendor will be asked to demonstrate its current data entitlement systems, billing and collection procedures, administrative usage and data display. Approximately one month prior to the on-site review, the Vendor will be contacted to schedule a meeting time, and once the date and time is set, a confirmation letter and a tentative agenda for the meeting will be sent.

 

On-site Review Process

 

To facilitate the on-site review process, Vendors shall have the required documentation available for the on-site review team's inspection at the beginning of the OSR. For all firms, the following information shall be available the day of the review:

 

For Internal and External Vendors:

• A system-generated list from the centralized entitlement system of all controlled clients-both professional and non-professional-for each product utilizing BTDS and ATDS data (as applicable). This list should be sorted to facilitate cross-reference to monthly usage reporting.
• A list of all administrative, developmental, or other non-billable users with access to real-time BTDS market data. This report should include the user's name, company, department, and reason for the special data entitlement.

 

For Retransmission Vendors Only:

• Ready access to the Subscriber Agreements. If applicable, the Vendor should also have a printout of the current database of On-Line Subscriber Agreements information such as the user name, professional or non-professional status, and contract execution date.
• Copies of current marketing and promotional materials, user guides, and customer price lists for all products and services containing TRACE Data.
• A demo logon and URL address for Internet-based products to be provided prior to the actual review.
• A system generated list of all TRACE real-time and delayed-time data feed recipients. In addition, the firm must provide an overview of the process used to authorize new data feeds as well as a copy of the data feed specifications for retransmission of BTDS and ATDS market data.

 

Follow-Up Procedures

 

Within two weeks of the review, the on-site review team will send a follow-up letter to the firm summarizing its findings. The letter will outline any outstanding items and the follow-up actions that FINRA or the FINRA administrator requires of the firm. Vendors must respond in writing to any outstanding items by the deadline date stated in the letter.