FINRA Announces Updates of the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules
SEC Financial Responsibility and Reporting Rules
Regulatory Notice | |
Notice Type Guidance |
Suggested Routing Compliance Finance Legal Operations Regulatory Reporting Senior Management |
Key Topics Books and Records Customer Protection Financial Reporting Net Capital Notification Provisions |
Referenced Rules & Notices Regulatory Notice 08-56 Regulatory Notice 13-44 SEA Rule 15c3-1 SEA Rule 15c3-1a SEA Rule 15c3-2 SEA Rule 15c3-3 SEA Rule 17a-5 SEA Rule 17a-11 |
Executive Summary
FINRA is making updates to the imbedded text of the Securities Exchange Act (SEA) financial responsibility and reporting rules in the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules to reflect the effectiveness of rule amendments the SEC recently adopted.1 The updated text relates to SEA Rules 15c3-1, 15c3-1a, 15c3-2, 15c3-3, 17a-5 and 17a-11. FINRA is also making available related updates of the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules that have been communicated to FINRA staff by the staff of the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets (SEC staff). The updated interpretations relate to SEA Rule 15c3-1.
Questions concerning this Notice should be directed to:
Background & Discussion
In August 2013, the SEC adopted amendments to the financial responsibility and reporting rules for broker-dealers.2 FINRA is updating the imbedded text of the portions of SEC rules in the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules to reflect the rule amendments that have taken effect.
Further, SEC staff continues to communicate and issue written and oral interpretations of the financial responsibility and reporting rules. FINRA previously published such interpretations in the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules on its website in Regulatory Notice 08-56 and subsequently updated such interpretations in Regulatory Notice 13-44. As FINRA noted in these Notices, the interpretations, referred to as the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules, are imbedded in the text of relevant rules and immediately follow the section of the rule that they interpret.
The interpretation updates resulting from the SEC's August 2013 amendments to SEA Rule 15c3-1 are set forth below. Page references are to the hardcopy version. These interpretations are being updated with specified additions, revisions and rescissions and are available in portable digital format (pdf) on FINRA's Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules page.
The following two interpretations have been rescinded:
FINRA member firms and others that maintain the hardcopy version of the Interpretations of Financial and Operational Rules may refer to the accompanying updated pages, containing the aforementioned rule text updates and interpretations, which are being distributed as replacements for existing pages. The filing instructions for the new pages are as follows:
SEA Rule | Remove Old Pages | Add New Pages |
15c3-1 | 1 | 1 |
15c3-1 | 63 | 63 |
15c3-1 | 156 | 156 |
15c3-1 | 221-226 | 221-225 |
15c3-1 | 255-272 | 255-272 |
15c3-1 | 451-452 | 451 |
15c3-1 | 725-726 | 725 |
15c3-1 | 784 | 784-785 |
15c3-1 | 851-854 | 851-854 |
15c3-1a | 1013 | 1013 |
15c3-2 | 1901-1902 | 1901 |
15c3-3 | 2464 | 2464-2466 |
17a-5 | 3201-3206 | 3201-3207 |
17a-5 | 3232 | 3232 |
17a-5 | 3243-3248 | 3243-3244 |
17a-11 | 3301-3302 | 3301-3302 |
1See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 70072 (July 30, 2013), 78 FR 51824 (August 21, 2013) (Financial Responsibility Rules for Broker-Dealers) and Securities Exchange Act Release No. 70073 (July 30, 2013), 78 FR 51910 (August 21, 2013) (Broker-Dealer Reports). The SEC subsequently modified the effective date of specified amendments to these rules pursuant to an Exemptive Order. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 70701 (October 17, 2013), 78 FR 62930 (October 22, 2013) (Order Providing Broker-Dealers a Temporary Exemption from the Requirements of Certain New Amendments to the Financial Responsibility Rules for Broker-Dealers under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934).
2See note 1.