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.
Disciplinary actions brought by Finra grew 13% last year to 1,310, from 1,158 in 2009, according to a study
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. won't be taking enforcement action against The Charles Schwab Corp. for the sale of auction rate securities
Finra claims that Lincoln Financial gave workers shared passwords for clients' accounts. All told, the regulator says more than 1 million records were viewed over a seven-year period.
Judges back earlier decision dismissing litigation against SRO; plaintiff's claim regulator misled members about NASD/NYSE merger
On Wednesday, Finra accused David Lerner Associates of selling an unsuitable investment -- shares of Apple REIT -- to unsophisticated and elderly clients. Sales of Apple REIT comprised 60% of the brokerage's business since 1996, the regulator added. In a statement, the firm said it expects 'to be completely vindicated.'
Wells Fargo wagon slow in getting info to clients, regulator claims; brokerage settles charges for $1M
Finra claims Pinnacle Partners is continuing to mislead potential investors about oil and gas private placements – even though the firm has already been hit with a cease-and-desist order.
Santander Securities agrees to pay $2M to settle charges brokers sold unsuitable investments to the elderly
Bulk of retiree's savings invested in two non-public mortgage funds; 'didn't have any access to his money'
The SEC and Finra are taking a closer look at how financial advisers use social networking
Don't expect Securities America Inc. to extricate itself anytime soon from the legal headaches and expenses connected with the private placements it sold from Medical Capital Holdings Inc., a now-bankrupt company that turned medical receivables into promissory notes
Securities America Inc. was dealt a costly legal blow on New Year's Eve when a Finra arbitration panel awarded almost $1.2 million in damages and legal fees to a client who sued the firm and a broker over the sale of private placements that regulators have alleged were fraudulent.
Loscalso claims he was axed for warning firm about lax oversight of brokers; 'fraud, forgery'
Broker-dealers without big corporate parents or the ability to tap public markets are making an all-out effort to raise capital, in some cases turning to their own clients for financing.
The ormer chairman and chief executive of UBS Financial Services Inc. and its PaineWebber predecessor, is weighing a return to retail brokerage
