Form BDW

To conduct securities transactions and business with the investing public in the United States, firms must file Form BD with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, appropriate self-regulatory organizations (SROs), including FINRA, and jurisdictions. Firms can file full or partial withdrawals of registration by submitting Form BDW (Uniform Request for Broker-Dealer Withdrawal).

Applicant firms that have not yet been approved for registration must also submit a Form BDW to withdraw their application and email their Membership Application Program (MAP) examiner stating their intent to withdraw. FINRA application fees are refundable if the application is withdrawn within 30 days of submitting Form NMA. Forms included with your submission will not be returned.

Learn more about what happens after you file for termination


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Types of Withdrawal

Partial Withdrawal

  • A partial withdrawal ends registration with one or more specified jurisdiction and/or SRO, but not with the SEC. Registration with at least one SRO and jurisdiction must be maintained in order to submit a partial withdrawal filing.

    Reminder: Partial Form U5 and Form BR withdrawals should be filed to terminate the appropriate SRO and/or jurisdiction registrations for a firm’s branches and registered individuals prior to the submission of the partial Form BDW.

Full Withdrawal

  • A full withdrawal terminates registration with FINRA, all other SROs, the SEC and all jurisdictions.


Before Submitting a Form BDW

Before submitting a Form BDW, firms should:

  • File a Form BD amendment to update inaccurate or incomplete information, pursuant to Article IV, Section 1 (c) of the FINRA By-Laws.
     
  • File Form U4 amendments to update inaccurate or incomplete information for registered representatives, pursuant to Article V, Section 2 (c) of the FINRA By-Laws.

    Note: Add employment end dates as appropriate via Form U4 amendment. The Employment History section of an individual’s CRD record cannot be updated via Form U5.


After Submitting a Form BDW

After submitting a Form BDW, firms should:

  • File a Form BD amendment to remove individuals from Schedules A/B, leaving at least one control person on Schedule A to finalize shutdown activities.
     
  • File U4 Page 2 Amendment(s) for Schedules A/B to add an appropriate employment end date in the Employment History section (Section 12). All U4 Page 2 Amendments must be submitted within 60 calendar days from the BDW filing date.
     
  • Submit Form U5 to terminate registration for individuals registered with the firm. All Form U5s must be submitted within 60 calendar days from the BDW filing date.
     
  • The Designated Custodian for terminating firms must send the completed Custodian Consent Form as a scanned email attachment to [email protected]. Designated Custodians that are unable to submit the form via email should contact the FINRA Support Center at (301) 869-6699 to make alternative arrangements.

Some jurisdictions may have additional filing requirements for withdrawing a firm registration. Firms should contact the appropriate jurisdictions for their specific filing requirements. A directory of states/jurisdictions is available from North American Securities Administrators Association.

If your firm is registered with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, be aware that MSRB Form A-12 must be amended to withdraw a firm’s municipal securities dealer registration. This cannot be accomplished via the Form BDW. Please see MSRB Rule A-12 and the MSRB Registration Manual for further guidance. 

Firms that are registered as municipal advisors and are terminating that business line must file Form MA-W with the SEC in addition to amending Form A-12. These firms must also file an amendment to each associated person’s Form MA-I to indicate that each such individual is no longer an associated person of the municipal advisor or no longer engages in municipal advisory activities on its behalf. Please see the SEC Office of Municipal Securities Municipal Advisors page for further information.