Election Notice – 12/22/2023

FINRA Announces SFAC, Regional Committee and NAC Election Results and Appointments

Published Date:

Executive Summary

FINRA recently held annual elections to fill vacancies on the Small Firm Advisory Committee (SFAC), the Regional Committees and the National Adjudicatory Council (NAC). Additionally, at its December meeting, the FINRA Board of Governors (FINRA Board) appointed several individuals to fill other vacancies on the SFAC and the NAC, and candidates for vacant Regional Committee seats were also appointed. This Notice lists the individuals recently elected and appointed to the SFAC, Regional Committees and NAC.    

Questions concerning this Notice may be directed to Jennifer Piorko Mitchell, Vice President and Deputy Corporate Secretary, via email or at (202) 728-8949.

Small Firm Advisory Committee 

FINRA’s small firms elected the following individuals as the Midwest Region and South Region Representatives on the SFAC:

Midwest Region 
Representative 
  • Robert L. Hamman, President & Chief Compliance Officer, First Asset Financial Inc.
South Region 
Representative
  • Alyson Mencio Stevens, Chief Compliance Officer, Wiley Bros.-Aintree Capital, &Partners, LLC

The following individuals were also appointed to at-large seats on the SFAC:

At-Large Members
  • Preston Haxo, Chief Compliance Officer, Mondeum Capital
  • Steven Jafarzadeh, Chief Compliance Officer, Stonehaven, LLC   
  • M. Carolina Rivas, Chief Compliance Officer, Bci Securities, Inc.

The new SFAC members, other than Mr. Haxo, will serve three-year terms beginning on January 1, 2024. Mr. Haxo was appointed to complete a partial term that runs until December 31, 2025.

Regional Committees 

For FINRA’s Regional Committee elections, all districts, except the New York Region/District 10, had two seats up for election (the New York Region/District 10 had four vacancies). The individuals listed below were either appointed to seats for which no candidates opted to run or were elected. They will serve three-year terms on the Regional Committees beginning January 1, 2024. In addition, there were appointments for existing vacancies with shorter terms remaining, as specified below.

One vacancy remains for District 11 and FINRA is seeking an individual to fill this position. Qualified individuals interested in this seat should complete the indication of interest form on FINRA’s website or email the Office of the Corporate Secretary to be considered. 

Seats that were uncontested or were filled by appointment are noted with an asterisk (*).

West Region Committee

West Region
District 1
Representatives

 

  • Harriet Britt, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Administrative Officer, Union Square Advisors LLC*
  • Joseph “Joe” Helmer, President, Caldwell Sutter Capital, Inc.*
  • Jason Rives, Chief Compliance Officer, Figure Securities, Inc.* 
    (Term: January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2024)
West Region
District 2
Representatives
  • Travis L. Bator, Chief Compliance Officer, Independent Financial Group LLC
  • Ann Robinson, Chief Compliance Officer, Farmers Financial Solutions, LLC
West Region 
District 3
Representatives
  • Daren Bryan, Manager, Branch Office Compliance/Inspections Team, Empower Financial Services, Inc.
  • Robert Wrubel, President, Cascade Investment Group, Inc.
Midwest Region Committee
Midwest Region 
District 4 
Representatives
  • Kenneth Cherrier, Chief Compliance Officer, Fidelity & Guaranty Securities, LLC
  • Matthew J. Kinsella, Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer, Ameritas Investment Company, LLC
  • Steve Youhn – Chief Compliance Officer, Cambridge Investment Research, Inc.* (Term: January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025) 
Midwest Region
District 8 
Representatives
  • Jon V. Cherry, President & Head of North America Brokerage, Northern Trust Securities, Inc.
  • John Szwagulak, Chief Compliance Officer, Huntington Securities, Inc.
  • Eric Wolfman – Compliance Director and Deputy CCO, KeyBanc Capital Markets* (Term: January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025) 
North Region Committee
North Region
District 9 
Representatives
  • Caroline K. Hall, Chief Compliance Officer and Deputy General Counsel, Janney Montgomery Scott  
  • Stephanie Mumford, Chief Compliance Officer/Managing Legal Counsel, T. Rowe Price Investment Services, Inc.
North Region
District 11 
Representative
  • Diana Perlman, Deputy Chief Compliance Officer, VP Distributors, LLC*
  • One Seat Open - Appointee being identified 
New York Region Committee
New York Region 
District 10 
Representatives
  • DiAnne Calabrisotto, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Compliance Officer, Siebert Williams Shank & Co., LLC
  • John Keating, Chief Compliance Officer, Webull Financial
  • Dean Park, Chief Compliance Officer, BTG Pactual US Capital, LLC
  • Osamu Watanabe, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, Moelis & Company LLC
South Region Committee
South Region 
District 5 
Representatives
  • Alyson Mencio Stevens, Chief Compliance Officer, Wiley Bros.-Aintree Capital, &Partners, LLC*
  • Coye “Trey” Cordle – Chief Compliance Officer, P.J. Robb Variable, LLC*
South Region 
District 6 
Representatives
  • Debby Bicanic, Head of Supervision, Fixed Income Capital Markets, Hilltop Securities, Inc.
  • Jim Muir, Chief Compliance Officer, USAA Investment Services Company
South Region 
District 7 
Representatives 
  • Shauna Blake, Senior Vice President, Head of Supervision, LPL Financial
  • Paula Heffron, Chief Compliance Officer, First Citizens Investor Services, Inc.

National Adjudicatory Council 

The FINRA Nominating & Governance Committee (Nominating Committee) nominated candidates for several appointed and elected seats on the NAC. The following individuals were appointed by the Board to fill these seats and to serve four-year terms beginning January 1, 2024. 

Appointed Seats

  • Non-Industry Member - Pauline Scalvino, Retired
  • At-large Industry Member - Karen O’Toole, Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Fidelity Investments 

Elected Seats1

  • Large Firm NAC Member - MaryBeth Findlay, head of compliance for the Commercial Banking Division, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC
  • Large Firm NAC Member - Scott Kursman, Managing Director and Chief Compliance Officer, Citigroup Global Markets, Inc.
  • Mid-Size Firm NAC Member - Kim Chapman, Chief Compliance Officer, Berthel, Fisher & Company Financial Services, Inc.

1 Because the Nominating Committee’s candidates for two large firm seats on the NAC were not contested, an election was not held for the Large Firm NAC Member seats and the candidates were appointed by the FINRA Board. The Nominating Committee’s Mid-Size Firm NAC Member nominee was contested and an election was held. Ms. Chapman won the election which concluded on December 15, 2023.