FINRA announced that it has revised the Rule 4530 (Reporting Requirements) Product and Problem Codes and Filing Application Form to reflect changes related to the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule and the MSRB’s rules on customer complaints and recordkeeping. The changes related to the DOL’s fiduciary rule became effective on June 9, 2017, while the changes related to the MSRB’s customer complaints rules will take effect on October 1, 2017.
Rule 4530 Filing System and Business Changes
In late October 2017, FINRA is retiring the current Regulatory Filing Application. At that time, the Rule 4530 application is moving to a new filing platform: the Common Data Intake Platform (CDIP). As part of this change, the content of Rule 4530 Complaints and Disclosure forms will be updated, including the addition of two “Related To” types and changes to the Product and Problem Codes.
In support of these business additions, firms that submit Rule 4530 filings using the Batch File Upload feature will need to update their XML to the new 4530 format. The following information includes details to help firms prepare for this change.
Systems Changes
Users who submit 4530 filings via Batch File Upload can continue to use the existing XML until their fourth quarter filing (due January 16, 2018), when they will need to file using the new 4530 XML format. However, beginning in October 2017, filers who use the Batch File Upload feature will now need to use the FINRA Secure FTP instead of the RFA application. We will be reaching out to impacted firms over the summer with their Secure FTP account information. Note that there will no longer be a Job Status page—instead, a validation report will be published to the Secure FTP directory used to upload the filing.
IMPORTANT: In addition, firms will need to begin capturing data for the new “Related To” fields beginning in October, as you are required to include this information in your firm’s fourth quarter filings due in January 2018.
User Acceptance Testing
FINRA will conduct user acceptance testing of the updated 4530 forms, cabinet and batch file upload beginning in late August 2017. More details will be available in the coming months.
Prepare for the 4530 Filing Systems Changes
Batch upload filers can begin preparing for this change now by taking the following steps:
- Download Any Filings More Than Two Years Old by October 22, 2017 – Beginning October 23, only the last two years of filings will be available in the new Rule 4530 filing cabinet. After that date, users will need to contact FINRA for assistance retrieving filings more than two years old. In the meantime, users who need these filings can download them from the Rule 4530 filing cabinet.
- Familiarize Yourself with the New “Related To” Fields and Changes to the Product and Problem Codes – Begin preparation for the capturing of the two new “Related To” types and the new and amended Product and Problem Codes.
- Update XML to the New 4530 Format Beginning in October – Note that beginning in January 2018, FINRA will only accept the new 4530 XML format, which is now available on FINRA’s Rule 4530 page.
Business Changes
The 4530 updates will result in the following business changes, effective October 2017:
- Two new “Related To” types will be available on all filings: “Non-Registered Rep Associated Person” and “Municipal Advisory Services.” These will be required for the January 2018 filings.
- There will be two new Problem Codes: Municipal Advisor Conflict of Interest (Problem Code 15) and DOL Fiduciary Rule (Problem Code 69). (Note: Problem Code 69 will be available effective June 9, 2017.)
- The Product and Problem Code definitions have been amended. A redline version of the Product and Problem Codes was recently posted to the Rule 4530 web page to illustrate the amendments.
- Filers no longer need to provide a customer account number (not included in the new format).
- Filers have 30 days after submission of a disclosure event filing or the end of the quarterly complaints filing period for a complaint filing to amend a filing. (Note: The 30-day limit does not apply to amendments made related to Problem Code 29 – Third Party/Anonymous.)
- 4530(a,b) Event Disclosures, 4530(d) Complaints, and 4530(f,g) Criminal Actions, Civil Litigations and Non-FINRA Arbitrations will be stored in a single filing cabinet on Firm Gateway under the Forms & Filings tab.
- Two years of historical filings will be migrated to the new 4530 cabinet. As mentioned above, filers will need to contact FINRA for assistance if they need filings older than two years as of October 2017.
- Filers can no longer use “Home” to indicate a branch. They must enter a branch code.
(see Regulatory Notice 17-21)
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