Guidance
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In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing number of states and localities have issued workplace restrictions as part of their efforts to prevent the spread of the disease. These “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders vary in scope and duration, but generally require businesses not considered “essential” to close their physical offices and continue their operations remotely.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), FINRA is providing temporary relief for member firms from rules and requirements in the Frequently Asked Questions below. The relief provided does not extend beyond the identified rules and requirements. FINRA will continue to monitor the situation to determine whether additional guidance and relief may be appropriate. As coronavirus-related risks decrease, member firms should expect to return to meeting any regulatory obligations for which relief has been provided.
On March 20, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) issued an order that, among other things, provides a temporary exemption until May 30, 2020 from the fingerprinting requirements of Securities Exchange Act Rule 17f-2 for FINRA members and their employees. As a condition of the relief, the Order requires written notification to the Commission by May 30, 2020, that a person will rely on the exemption. FINRA has provided that notification on behalf of all of its members and their employees.
FINRA is hosting a series of webinars to discuss ongoing developments to our technology products that may affect firm workflows. Join us for an upcoming webinar about the benefits of the Financial Professional Gateway (FinPro), a platform of growing compliance tools for your firm's associated individuals.
Register to Attend a Webinar About the New FINRA Gateway
Register to attend an upcoming webinar which will introduce FINRA Gateway, the new FINRA reporting and compliance user experience, which will roll out over the coming months. The new system, powered by FINRA's Digital Experience Transformation (DXT) initiative, is designed to streamline the FINRA compliance and reporting experience by providing a more flexible solution that can be customized to hone in on your needs.
February 2020
Trading & Financial Compliance Examinations (“TFCE”) of the Market Regulation Department (“Market Regulation”) at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) is conducting a review of [FIRM] concerning the Firm’s decision not to charge commissions for customer transactions, the impact that not charging commissions has or will have on the Firm’s order routing practices and decisions, and other aspects of the Firm’s business.
Is there a rule that addresses prohibited conditions relating to expungement of customer dispute information?
Yes, FINRA Rule 2081 provides that no member or associated person shall condition or seek to condition settlement of a dispute with a customer on, or to otherwise compensate the customer for, the customer’s agreement to consent to, or not to oppose, the member’s or associated person’s request to expunge customer dispute information from the CRD system.
Does FINRA Rule 2081 apply only to settlements?
FINRA regulates a critical part of the securities industry – brokerage firms doing business with the public in the United
Summary
FINRA is issuing this Notice to restate and supplement prior guidance regarding the circumstances under which a firm or individual may influence the outcome of an investigation by demonstrating extraordinary cooperation. This Notice incorporates FINRA’s prior guidance and provides clarification and additional information about how FINRA assesses whether a potential respondent’s cooperation is “extraordinary” and distinct from the level of cooperation expected of all member firms and their associated persons.