Washington — The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has hired Robert L. D. Colby as its Chief Legal Officer. Colby will oversee the corporate and regulatory functions of the Office of General Counsel, along with the Regulatory Policy Group, which, among other things, is responsible for implementing FINRA's Corporate Financing and Advertising rules. Colby will join FINRA on June 18.
"Bob is a perfect match for this key position and an excellent addition to our management team," said Richard G. Ketchum, Chairman and CEO of FINRA. "Bob's unparalleled expertise in both regulatory and corporate law makes him uniquely suited to be FINRA's first Chief Legal Officer."
Currently a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, Colby's practice encompasses complex regulatory and compliance matters involving securities and derivatives for broker-dealers, financial institutions and markets and clearing organizations.
Before joining Davis Polk, Colby spent 28 years at the Securities and Exchange Commission – most recently as Deputy Director of the Division of Trading and Markets. He also served as the Chief Counsel of Trading and Markets and Chief of the Division's Branch of Market Structure.
FINRA's General Counsel, Grant Callery, who joined FINRA (then NASD) in 1979, has announced he will retire October 1. Marc Menchel, General Counsel for Regulation, is leaving FINRA June 1 for private practice.
"I want to thank Grant and Marc for their extraordinary service to the organization, especially their work around the consolidation agreement between NASD and NYSE Member Regulation, which led to the creation of FINRA in 2007."
FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services. FINRA touches virtually every aspect of the securities business – from registering and educating all industry participants to examining securities firms, writing rules, enforcing those rules and the federal securities laws, informing and educating the investing public, providing trade reporting and other industry utilities, and administering the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and firms. For more information, please visit www.finra.org.