JONES DAY TALKS®: Consumer Protection Enforcement Changes Likely After SCOTUS AMG Decision
At the start of this month, FINRA ordered Merrill Lynch to return nearly $1.5 million to its customers. FINRA determined that Merrill reps recommended that customers purchase products in brokerage accounts rather than...more
After collecting near-record amounts in fines, restitution, and disgorgement in 2021 – which included a $70 million monetary penalty against a financial institution in a single action – FINRA continues to raise the bar on...more
Seems like just days ago I blogged about Jessica Hopper and her commitment to providing restitution to customers. Since I posted that blog, there were two other settlements (which I added to that blog as updates) in which...more
I may have said this before in another post, but in my opinion, whether a baseball umpire is good or bad is not a matter of whether he has a low strikezone, a high strikezone, or a wide one. What matters is that whatever that...more
From time to time, I have lamented that FINRA does not hold itself to the same lofty standards to which it holds its members. I realize I am painting with a broad brush, as there are lots of folks at FINRA who do a great job,...more
Justice Brandeis once famously said that sunlight is the best disinfectant. Perhaps, but in FINRA’s purview, settlements might be better. Along these lines, FINRA recently announced that it has reached final settlements in...more
On July 11, FINRA released Regulatory Notice 19-23 (the Notice),1 which provides welcome details on the ways that firms and individuals can receive credit for extraordinary cooperation in connection with an investigation in...more
On July 11, 2019, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) restated and supplemented prior guidance regarding the circumstances under which FINRA will award credit for “extraordinary cooperation” in...more
FINRA yesterday issued long-anticipated guidance concerning credit for extraordinary cooperation in the context of enforcement investigations. Like its government counterparts, FINRA hopes to incentivize member firms that go...more
On January 28, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued a Regulatory Notice announcing the 529 Plan Share Class Initiative, a self-reporting initiative to promptly compensate harmed investors and promote...more
In 2017, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ordered more than two times the restitution from the prior year, resulting in the fourth highest total of sanctions (fines combined with restitution and...more
Over the past several years, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), the self-regulatory organization responsible for regulating every brokerage firm and broker doing business with the U.S. public, brought...more
Regulatory Developments: FINRA Requests Comment on Rules Relating to Financial Exploitation of Vulnerable Adults - On Oct. 15 FINRA published Regulatory Notice 15-37, requesting comment on proposed amendments to...more
Despite a slowdown in the fines reported in 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has continued to flex its enforcement muscle so far this year. During the first half of 2015, FINRA reported $37.5 million...more
A recurrent theme in today’s enforcement environment is parallel and often overlapping proceedings. That is the case with a District of Columbia based broker that drew sanctions from the SEC, FINRA and DC. In the Matter of...more