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Guidance

We offer guidance to firms in the form of podcasts, webinars, FAQs, reports, and more. Use the toggle below to find guidance by topic, type or date. 

5 A B C D E F G H I L M N O P Q R S T V
Media Center
Why do we engage with scammers? What makes one person more likely to engage than the next? Of those that engage, what makes someone more likely to lose money? On this episode, we dig into the research on these important questions with three academics in the field.
October 15, 2024
Guidance
This notification warns member firms of an ongoing phishing campaign that began on or around Oct. 9 that involves fraudulent emails purporting to be from FINRA executives, in some instances containing a PDF attachment. These emails are not from FINRA, and firms should delete them and consider blocking their domains.
October 09, 2024
Guidance
FINRA has implemented Form BR (Uniform Branch Office Registration Form) functionality enhancements for amendments to Form BR submissions for existing locations that will allow firms to account for the RSL designation by de-selecting a location’s registration for FINRA and the jurisdiction that accepts the RSL designation, while continuing to pre-select the location’s registration or notice filing in a jurisdiction or the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), or both, that has not accepted the RSL designation. 
October 07, 2024
Guidance
Download the Findings Reporting Categories for Remote Inspection Pilot Participants
October 03, 2024
Media Center
Falling victim to a scam carries more than just a financial impact. It can be an isolating experience and exact a mental and emotional toll. On this episode, we hear about the experience of two real life victims and their efforts to recover from their loss with the help of the Cybercrime Support Network.
October 01, 2024
Arbitration and Mediation

The Neutral Corner – Volume 3—2024

Mission Statement

Pro Se Parties: Tips for an Effective Hearing by Khoi Dang-Vu, Associate Regional Director, FINRA Midwest Regional Office and Dontay Phillips, Former FINRA Intern

FINRA Dispute Resolution Services (DRS) and FINRA News

September 30, 2024
Board of Governors Meeting
The FINRA Board announced two newly appointed Industry Governors, received an update on FINRA’s Enforcement Digital Transformation and continued discussions around FINRA’s long-term financial planning.
September 27, 2024
Media Center
Last week, FINRA CEO Robert Cook spoke at a conference hosted by the FINRA Foundation to underscore the importance of working together to disrupt the cycle of fraud. He highlighted specific areas for further coordination and announced that FINRA will reach out operators of existing regulatory databases to explore ways to create a one-stop shop resource for investor research. On this episode, we tune in to his remarks.
September 17, 2024
Board of Governors Meeting
Read CEO Robert Cook’s email to firms previewing topics the Board is scheduled to discuss at the September 2024 FINRA Board of Governors Meeting.
September 17, 2024
Guidance
A new question has been added to the Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4) to identify Residential Supervisory Locations (RSLs) for purposes of complying with FINRA Rule 3110.19(d), as amended (RSL Question). Firms that have identified a location as a non-registered private residence are required to answer the RSL Question as either “Yes” or “No” by December 26, 2024. The previously announced October 15, 2024 date in Regulatory Notice 24-02 has been replaced by the December 26, 2024 deadline. Further information on Form U4’s new RSL Question and the related deadline is available in File No. SR-FINRA-2024-015 and in the Frequently Asked Questions about Residential Supervisory Locations (RSLs).
September 16, 2024
Guidance
This Guidance assists member firms with continuing membership applications (CMAs) as part of the implementation of a succession plan or an exit from the broker-dealer securities business (which may or may not be connected to a succession plan).
September 11, 2024
Guidance
The Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) within FINRA’s Member Supervision program highlights recent cybersecurity risks at third-party providers (commonly referred to as third-party vendors) impacting member firms.
September 09, 2024
Media Center
FINRA’s Examinations team has undertaken changes to create efficiencies before, during and after the exam process to continuously improve the program. On this episode, three senior leaders of the team join us to detail some of the recent changes, including the introduction of thematic reviews, changes to the post-exam closeout process and more.
September 03, 2024
Guidance
As part of FINRA’s mission to protect investors and promote market integrity, we are focused on addressing the regulatory challenges presented by our member firms’ crypto asset activities. Crypto assets—also known as digital assets—are assets that are issued or transferred using distributed ledger or blockchain technology. They include, but are not limited to, so-called virtual currencies, coins, and tokens. A particular crypto asset may or may not meet the definition of a “security” under the federal securities laws.
August 13, 2024
Media Center
FINRA's Membership Application Program serves as the entry point to FINRA membership for firms that meet 14 different standards for admission. On this episode, we hear how the group ensures members and would-be members adhere to these standards to safeguard the integrity of the market and ensure Americans can invest with confidence.
August 06, 2024
Media Center
Last summer, we introduced listeners to FINRA’s Crypto Hub, an enterprise-wide strategy for keeping up with the evolving crypto asset regulatory landscape. On this episode, we have three members of the hub join us to provide an update on that work to dig into the results of a recent survey of member firms regarding their crypto asset touch points to tell us about the new spot Bitcoin ETP market and more.
July 23, 2024
Guidance
The Cyber and Analytics Unit (CAU) within FINRA’s Member Supervision program highlights recent reports of a CrowdStrike service outage affecting Microsoft operating systems. FINRA continues to monitor the outage.
July 19, 2024
Report / Study
FINRA regulates a critical part of the securities industry – member brokerage firms doing business in the United States. In an effort to increase public awareness and understanding about the broad range of FINRA-registered firms and individuals, FINRA shares an annual snapshot of some of the data collected in the course of its work.
July 18, 2024
Guidance
FINRA has implemented Form BR (Uniform Branch Office Registration Form) functionality enhancements for initial Form BR submissions that allow firms to de-select FINRA when establishing a new location designated as an RSL that needs to be registered or notice filed with a jurisdiction, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), or both, as a branch office. Further information on these functionality enhancements and how firms should complete an initial Form BR is available in the Frequently Asked Questions about Residential Supervisory Locations (RSLs). 
July 18, 2024
Media Center
FINRA's Financial Intelligence Unit acts as a nerve center for information on emerging threats impacting the financial industry with the aim of providing actionable intelligence to firms, other regulators and law-enforcement to keep investors safe. On this episode, we learn how the group has grown in recent years and hear how they are evolving the way they share information.
July 09, 2024
Arbitration and Mediation
Prohibited Independent Research in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Don’t Do It, by Jennifer LaMont, Regional Manager, FINRA Southeast Region and other news.
June 28, 2024
Guidance
On June 25, 2024, Progress Software released the MOVEit Transfer Critical Security Alert Bulletin (the Alert Bulletin) for CVE-2024-5806, a newly identified Critical Vulnerability, which was described as an Improper Authentication vulnerability in MOVEit Transfer, Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) module and could lead to Authentication Bypass.
June 27, 2024
Media Center
Financial social media influencers or finfluencers are growing in popularity as a cheap way to reach a new generation of investors. But using this newer form of advertising comes with risks. On this episode, we learn more about the regulatory requirements around the use of social media influencers and hear some best practices for firms looking to make use of “finfluencer” programs.
June 25, 2024
Guidance
ONNX Store, a Phishing-as-a-service platform (PhaaS), is targeting Microsoft 365 (M365) accounts at FINRA member firms with an advanced social engineering attack known as quishing: a business email compromise (BEC) attack that uses QR codes in embedded PDF documents to redirect victims to phishing URLs.
June 21, 2024
Guidance
FINRA understands that certain jurisdictions and SROs that require a branch office to be either “registered” or “notice filed,” using Form BR (Uniform Branch Office Registration Form) may not currently be able to recognize FINRA Rule 3110.19 (Residential Supervisory Location (“RSL”)). 
June 18, 2024