Blog | MasterCompliance

The topic of due diligence is widely discussed regarding the financial services industry.  Due diligence of products.  Due diligence of potential employees.  Due diligence of client suitability.  But, what exactly does it mean when applied to financial services and what does it mean to representatives? “Due diligence” is commonly defined as an investigation of a business or person prior to signing a contract, or an act with a certain standard of care.  Due diligence, in the financial services world, is commonly seen as the process of investigation and evaluation, into the details of a potential investment, such as an examination of Read More....

Last month, Stephens Inc. was censured by FINRA and fined $900,000 for failing to properly supervise “flash” emails sent by its research department.  According to FINRA Rule 3110, firms must have supervisory procedures established which include procedures for the review of incoming and outgoing written (including electronic) correspondence and internal communications relating to the member’s investment banking or securities business. The issue began when Stephens Inc.’s research analysts sent flash emails to the sales and trading personnel.  Although the research analysts sent the flash emails internally, the lack of supervision created the risk that material non-public information may have been included Read More....

MSRB Rule G-18, the new best-execution rule for municipal securities, became effective March 21, 2016. At this point, most broker-dealers registered with the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (“MSRB”) have implemented written policies and procedures for seeking best execution on customer orders in municipal securities. Now, if you are a compliance officer or municipal securities principal at one of these broker-dealers, you may still be pondering precisely how your firm is going to perform and document the required periodic reviews of its best-execution policies and procedures. Many introducing broker-dealers hope to avail themselves of a provision in Rule G-18 that seemingly Read More....

FINRA offers securities and compliance professionals valuable education and training opportunities, particularly in compliance and regulatory matters. FINRA’s conferences and educational events keep securities and compliance professionals informed about recent and upcoming regulatory and rules developments as well as FINRA’s priorities and practical guidance on compliance issues. FINRA’s conference provide you with the unique opportunity to stay current on rules and regulations in a setting designed to promote timely learning and information sharing with industry peers, regulators, and other financial services professionals. FINRA’s conferences and educational events also provide the opportunity to learn about the most up-to-date compliance information directly Read More....

[Continued from Regulation Crowdfunding – Part I] Crowdfunding Requirements for Intermediaries  The following requirements apply to both broker-dealers and funding portals acting as an intermediary in a transaction involving the sales of securities pursuant to Regulation Crowdfunding (“Regulation CF”): iMessage for PC: Download iMessage for Windows in easy steps. Read about its alternatives, features and downloading procedure for Mac. iMessage for Windows 10 How To Download And Use iMessage On Windows PC Laptop Register with the SEC as a broker or as a funding portal. Register with a self-regulatory organization (“SRO”); the only eligible SRO at present being FINRA. In Read More....

On October 30, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) voted to adopt Regulation Crowdfunding (“Regulation CF”) under the provisions of Title III of the JOBS Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”).  The final rules adopted under Regulation CF became effective on May 16, 2016, with entities wishing to act as broker-dealers or “crowdfunding portals” for such offerings starting the application process with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) as early as the end of January. Crowdfunding Requirements for Investors Via the creation of Regulation CF, the JOBS Act added a new exemption to the Securities Act of 1933, Section Read More....