Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)
The US self-regulatory organisation for broker-dealers, overseen by the SEC.
Overview
FINRA writes and enforces rules for member broker-dealers and their registered representatives, examines firms, administers qualification exams and operates the largest securities dispute resolution forum in the US.
Its powers include writing binding rules, supervising and examining the organisations it oversees, granting and withdrawing licences or registrations, investigating and imposing penalties and restricting activities or withdrawing permissions.
In the United States it works at national level.
Check the official sources below for legal scope, applicable dates and exceptions. This entry is an explanatory reference, not legal advice.
Why it matters
It can both set the rules and punish breaches of them, so its priorities shape compliance risk directly.
Who it affects
Organisations in capital markets in the United States.
Where it sits
Ten linked steps connect where you operate to the proof that you complied.
- 01Jurisdiction
- 02Industry
- 03Activity
- 04Authority
- 05Regulation
- 06Requirement
- 07Guidance
- 08Control
- 09Evidence
- 10Enforcement
Connections
The terms most closely tied to FINRA. Select one to open it.
What to do about it
- 1Confirm whether FINRA has power over you, and through which licence, registration, membership or activity.
- 2Follow its rules, guidance and enforcement publications as they are issued.
- 3Map each obligation it creates to a control with a named owner.
- 4Keep examination-ready evidence for its highest-risk obligations.
From requirement to evidence.
Regulation Layer tracks its publications in the change feed, maps its obligations to your controls, and links its enforcement actions to the obligations they cite.
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