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4150. Guarantees by, or Flow Through Benefits for, Members

(a) Prior written notice shall be given to FINRA whenever any member guarantees, endorses or assumes, directly or indirectly, the obligations or liabilities of another person.
(b) Prior written approval must be obtained from FINRA whenever any member receives flow through capital benefits in accordance with Appendix C of SEA Rule 15c3-1.

• • • Supplementary Material: --------------

.01 Financial and Operational Impact. The written notice required by paragraph (a) of this Rule shall be given to FINRA at least 10 business days prior to entering into such arrangement or relationship with another person. Both the written notice required by paragraph (a) of this Rule and the request for approval under paragraph (b) of this Rule shall include the address and general nature of business conducted by such person, a description of the relationship or arrangement between the parties, details regarding the capitalization of such person (including the percentage of ownership or profits by the member), as well as the actual and potential effect of the arrangement or relationship on the member's capital (including net capital) and operations and such other information as FINRA may require. A request for approval under paragraph (b) of this Rule shall further include an opinion of counsel where such is required in conformity with Appendix C of SEA Rule 15c3-1.

.02 Member Dealings. A member may at any time be required to provide FINRA with information with respect to the arrangement, relationship and dealings with a person referred to in this Rule.

.03 Books and Records. No member shall enter into an arrangement described in this Rule unless it has the authority to make available promptly the books and records of such other person for inspection by FINRA in the United States. The books and records of such person shall be kept separately from those of the member.

.04 FOCUS Reporting Requirements. For persons referred to in this Rule that are registered broker-dealers, the member shall furnish to FINRA copies of such person's FOCUS Reports simultaneous with their being filed with the person's designated examining authority. For persons referred to in this Rule that are not registered broker-dealers, FINRA requires, in lieu of FOCUS, submission of financial and operational statements, in such format and at such time periods as may be required by FINRA, sufficient to gauge the capital and operational effects of the arrangement or relationship.

.05 Routine Guarantees. Guarantees executed routinely in the normal course of business such as trade guarantees, signature guarantees, endorsement of securities and the writing of options, are not subject to the requirements of this Rule provided that, in regard to the guarantee of the writing of options, the transaction is appropriately recorded on the member's books and records in accordance with SEA Rule 17a-3(a)(10) and is reflected in its net capital computation pursuant to SEA Rule 15c3-1.

.06 Guarantees Already in Effect. Within 30 days of August 1, 2011, each member shall advise FINRA, in writing, of any guarantees, endorsements, assumptions of obligations/liabilities, or flow through capital benefits, in effect as of August 1, 2011 not having otherwise been reported, in writing, to the appropriate Regulatory Coordinator.

Adopted by SR-FINRA-2010-061 eff. Aug. 1, 2011.

Selected Notice: 11-26.

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