Office address: 1700 K St NW, Washington, DC 20006
Website: finra.org
Year established: 2007 Company type: non-government organization
Employees: 4,200+
Expertise: securities regulation, broker-dealer supervision, market surveillance, enforcement and disciplinary actions, investor education, dispute resolution and arbitration, trade reporting transparency, cybersecurity and fraud detection
Parent company: N/A Key people: Robert Cook (CEO); Robert Colby (chief legal officer); Todd Diganci (CFO); Marcia Asquith (EVP); Ornella Bergeron, Denise Dombay, and Maureen Delaney (SVPs)
Financing status: N/A
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is a Washington-based self-regulatory body that supervises more than 3,200 broker-dealers. It enforces rules, monitors trading, and runs tools such as TRACE, BrokerCheck, and the consolidated audit trail. In 2024, it posted $99 million net income and unveiled a crypto education program.
FINRA was officially formed in 2007 through a strategic merger. The National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) joined forces with the New York Stock Exchange's (NYSE) regulatory division to operate as one.
This created a unified, independent regulator for America's securities industry. The move modernized oversight for a changing market and strengthened investor protections nationwide.
FINRA's story actually began decades earlier, in an era of economic recovery. The NASD registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 1939. This registration formalized what traders had been doing informally for generations.
Congress had established the SEC in 1934 following the devastating market crash of 1929. Two years later, lawmakers passed the Maloney Act to regulate off-exchange securities trading more effectively.
The NASD spent 68 years evolving to match the changing securities landscape and technology. By the early 2000s, fragmented regulatory oversight became increasingly inefficient for a modern industry.
The 2007 merger created the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority by combining the NASD's institutional knowledge with the NYSE's regulatory expertise. This unified regulator now oversees all brokers and firms across US markets comprehensively.
As 2024 closed, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority issued substantial penalties against three major firms. These companies faced settlements for sending inaccurate trade information and filing flawed Focus reports. Year-end enforcement actions let both regulators and firms resolve lingering compliance issues cleanly.companies faced settlements for sending inaccurate trade information and filing flawed Focus reports. Year-end enforcement actions let both regulators and firms resolve lingering compliance issues cleanly.
Into 2025, FINRA's Regulatory Oversight Report highlighted three major threats to the industry. Cybersecurity vulnerabilities from third-party technology providers topped concerns alongside AI compliance challenges. Investment fraud schemes also continue to shift as bad actors devise new ways to deceive clients.
FINRA regulates broker-dealers and investment firms in America by combining enforcement with educational resources to protect investors and maintain market integrity:
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority also addresses emerging threats like cybersecurity risks and artificial intelligence compliance challenges. The organization remains focused on supporting a healthy, trustworthy securities market for all participants.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority reports that investor protection and market stability form the core of its mission. The regulator values its employees and delivers market-rate compensation with benefits such as:
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority also says that it does not discriminate in hiring based on disability, veteran status, and other protected classifications under federal, state, and local law. It complies with 41 CFR regulations protecting disabled individuals and veterans.
Robert W. Cook is the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's president and CEO, with prior experience directing the SEC's trading and markets division. Before FINRA, Cook was a partner at a law firm in Washington. His education includes a JD from Harvard Law School, a master's degree from the London School of Economics, and an undergraduate from Harvard.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's leadership team includes the following key executives:
These executives manage the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's daily operations while upholding the organization's core mission to protect investors.
FINRA launched a targeted probe into broker-dealers underwriting small foreign company IPOs to combat pump-and-dump schemes. The regulator required detailed supervisory procedures and due diligence records for offerings between January 2023 and September 2025. This enforcement action positions the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority as a proactive market protector against cross-border securities fraud.
The organization also penalized First Trust Portfolios, an ETF provider, in 2025 with a $10 million settlement for excessive gifts to broker-dealer representatives. The violations spanned from 2018 through February 2024 and included luxury courtside tickets and concert events. This enforcement action illustrates FINRA's commitment to preventing investor harm through strict non-cash compensation oversight.
Rep. Spencer Bachus, an Alabama Republican and chairman of the House Finance Committee, is floating legislation that would establish one or more self regulatory organizations to oversee investment advisers; the fiduciary standard hits a snag; and the SEC takes a look at sub-accounts.
Suddenly, selling away is again a big concern for regulators and law enforcement agencies. In recent months, former reps at several marquee B-Ds have been investigated for allegedly peddling unapproved investments on the side. | <b>Extra </b><a href=http://www.investmentnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=CI&Date=20110923&Category=FREE&ArtNo=923009998&Ref=PH>What top RIA execs earn</a>
The following is an edited transcript of the Sept. 13 webcast “Extreme Makeover: Social-Media Edition.” It was moderated by deputy editor Evan Cooper.
Millions of investors are at risk of being defrauded because the SEC lacks the financial resources to do an adequate job of policing the advice business
Finra is continuing to shake up the way broker-dealers show the value of illiquid investments such as non-traded real estate investment trusts and private placements on clients' account statements.
Clients of David Lerner Associates Inc. holding shares in nontraded REITs created by Apple REIT Cos. Inc. received account statements at the end of last month in which the longtime value of the shares was shown as “not priced”
The price of one in a series of 10 nontraded REITs sold exclusively through David Lerner Associates Inc. took a hit yesterday when management from Apple REIT Eight Inc. said that its book value was $7.57 per share at the end of March, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. That's in contrast to the $11-per-share price that Apple REIT Eight posted last week in a separate SEC filing.
In a little-noticed but surprising move, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. last week withdrew a controversial proposal to revamp its supervisory rules that would have, among other things, required supervision of nonsecurities-related businesses.
The latest scrum over how to boost oversight of financial advisers suggests that independent advisers may have to accept an entirely new self-regulator if they want to avoid coming under Finra's jurisdiction
In a move that could affect the sales of securities and insurance in the state, Iowa's insurance regulator this week is expected to issue guidance on how far insurance agents and brokers can go in advising clients on the suitable sources of funds for insurance products
The regulator wants to ban from its arbitration forums so called “collective action” claims brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act or the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
With the Sept. 13 deadline on pay-to-play rules looming, mutual fund companies are in heated discussions with broker-dealers about getting access to customer information that they need to comply
Former Bank of America wealth management chief Sallie L. Krawcheck quietly stepped down from her Finra board seat sometime in the past week or so, according to published reports
The FBI is investigating two former Edward Jones brokers based in South Dakota for their role in a “selling-away” case that involved raising money from clients who invested in an alleged Ponzi scheme.
