Ad Hoc Committees

FINRA departments also create specific subject-matter committees as needed to consult on various issues. The composition of the committees and their meeting frequency depends upon FINRA’s consultation needs related to the subject matter.

Current active ad hoc committees include the following:

Complaints Initiatives Committee (CIC)—composed of representatives from approximately 23 firms that file much of the information collected pursuant to Rule 4530 (Reporting Requirements), especially information regarding written customer complaints required by Rule 4530(d). The CIC advises FINRA’s National Cause and Financial Crimes Detection Program regarding issues and trends relating to the rule’s requirement to report quarterly statistical and summary information regarding written customer complaints. FINRA staff consults with the CIC on changes to Rule 4530, related technology application issues and Regulatory Notices and frequently asked questions (FAQs) that are published regarding Rule 4530.

FINRA Staff Liaisons:
Han Nguyen
Tina Tambiah

Continuing Education Content Committee—composed of member firm and self-regulatory (SRO) representatives who are called upon for specific subject matter expertise relating to registration functions, industry products, rules and regulations, and broker-dealer business areas. The content committee members advise on content development for Regulatory Element training and the FINRA E-learning Program, which maintains a suite of training courses on a range of compliance topics. SRO members include staff from the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB), Cboe, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and FINRA. Committee members meet in small groups based on the subject matter expertise needed at a given meeting.

FINRA Staff Liaison:
Patricia Monterosso

FinTech Industry Committee—composed of 15 members drawn from member firms, academia, and industry participants, in addition to one Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) observer and one North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) observer. The committee provides FINRA, member firms and others with a platform for ongoing dialogue and analysis of FinTech developments, including with respect to their potential impact on FINRA’s investor protection and market integrity objectives; challenges to the adoption of FinTech-based products or services; opportunities to improve interactions between FinTech firms and FINRA to support innovation that is consistent with FINRA’s investor protection and market integrity objectives; and possible FINRA FinTech initiatives.

FINRA Staff Liaisons:
Alex Khachaturian
Steve Polansky
Haimera Workie

Licensing and Registration Council (LRC)—composed of 10 industry members, five NASAA members and two SEC observers. The committee advises FINRA’s Credentialing, Registration, Education and Disclosure Department regarding broad issues relating to the licensing and registration of financial services firms and their associated persons. The LRC provides a forum for the open discussion of issues relating to Web CRD^® and the Investment Adviser Registration Depository (IARD^TM), and provides recommendations for enhancements of those systems. The LRC also addresses issues regarding FINRA qualification examinations and maintains a Registration and Qualification Sub-Committee consisting solely of industry members to make policy and system recommendations to the larger committee.

FINRA Staff Liaison:
Bill Swanstrom

Market Surveillance Advisory Group (Advisory Group)—composed of six experts in fields ranging from physics, data science, machine learning and artificial intelligence, as well as trading and financial market structure. The Advisory Group provides input to help FINRA evaluate the current level of sophistication of its markets surveillance program and to explore innovations in modern financial analysis, quantitative data analysis, data mining, artificial intelligence and machine learning that can be used to enhance FINRA’s surveillance capabilities.

FINRA Staff Liaison:
Christopher Moraitis

Public Communications Committee—The Public Communications Committee is composed of member firm representatives. The committee advises FINRA on matters regarding proposed changes, interpretive guidance and the implementation of FINRA rules governing member communications with the public, including communications concerning registered investment companies and variable insurance products, and informs the FINRA staff on matters concerning emerging communications technologies.

FINRA Staff Liaison:
Amy Sochard

Qualification Exam Content Committees (10 Committees)—Each committee is composed of 12 to 30 members drawn from the industry and self-regulatory organization (SRO) staff. SRO members include staff from the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB), Cboe, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and FINRA. Larger committees meet in smaller groups based on content expertise needed at a meeting. The committees advise FINRA’s Testing and Continuing Education (TCE) Department regarding the content of all qualification exams. The current committees are composed as follows:

FINRA Staff Liaison:
Joe McDonald

Rule 4210 Committee—composed of representatives from member firms and representatives from the SEC, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Cboe and Options Clearing Corporation. The Committee advises FINRA’s Office of Financial & Operational Risk Policy with respect to the industry’s margin and credit practices. FINRA’s staff consults with the Committee regarding issues and changes relating to Rule 4210 (Margin Requirements), the rule’s interpretations and other related margin regulations including Regulation T.

FINRA Staff Liaison:
James Barry