Finra Unscripted

When it comes to detecting insider trading, it really is like finding a needle in a haystack with more than 15,000 different stocks, options and bonds trading every day across millions of transactions. Yet, Sam Draddy and the Insider Surveillance team in the Office of Fraud Detection and Market Intelligence manage to find those needles. The Insider Surveillance team does it by combining a lot of data—20 years’ worth of data on thousands of actively traded bonds, stocks and equity options—with a mix of sophisticated surveillance technology and good old-fashioned detective work. On this episode of FINRA Unscripted Sam Draddy walks us through the process. Plus, he shares details of some of the most interesting cases of his career and attempts to answer the real question: why do people do it? Resources mentioned in this episode: SEC’s Edgar Database Pro Golfer Agrees to Repay Trading Profits SEC’s Perk Hixon Case Did Somebody Just Eat a Post-It?

Contrary to popular belief, many millennials aren’t too keen on robo-advisors and would actually prefer to work with a professional—but don’t feel confident enough to know where to begin. What does that actually mean for young, would-be investors? On episode 19, Gerri Walsh and Gary Mottola of the FINRA Foundation joined us on the first part of this two-part series to discuss these and other misconceptions and roadblocks that millennials face in their paths to becoming investors as revealed by the new study, "Uncertain Futures: Seven Myths about Millennials and Investing." In this second part of the series, Gerri and Gary are back to turn some of those myths into actionable information. If you haven’t yet started investing because you have too much debt, you lack confidence or don’t even know where to begin, stay tuned, because Gerri and Gary have tips for you on this episode of FINRA Unscripted. Resources mentioned in this episode: Uncertain Futures: Seven Myths about Millennials and Investing CFA

When Bari Havlik joined FINRA as Executive Vice President of the newly named Member Supervision team, she did so with big plans for the examination and risk monitoring programs. After a more than 30 year career in compliance with the last 14 years spent as a chief compliance officer, Bari joined FINRA with a unique perspective on what FINRA could do to better leverage its staff and its talent and skills—while also eliminating duplication and improving the examination and risk monitoring experience for firms. In this episode of FINRA Unscripted, Bari joins us to share more about her vision for the future of FINRA’s exam and risk monitoring programs. Resources mentioned in this episode: Program Transformation Announcement FINRA360 Progress Report

In an era when much of our lives happen online, from banking to social media, cybersecurity is more important than ever. And we all have a role to play—not just in keeping ourselves safe, but also our employers and customers. As we become more connected, we also must also become more vigilant. But what do you do to remain secure? Whether you are a broker, an investor or just simply an internet user, we’ve got tips for you on this episode of FINRA Unscripted. In honor of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Barry Suskind and Eugene Mindel of FINRA’s Cyber and Information Security team join us to provide resources and best practices for keeping you, your family and your clients protected while online. Resources mentioned in this episode: Cybersecurity Resources Small Firm Cybersecurity Checklist Fake Phishing, Real Benefits

Millennials are on the cusp of surpassing Baby Boomers as the largest adult generation in America. Yet the soon-to-be largest generation in the nation remains substantially under-invested. Why? That is the question the FINRA Foundation and CFA Institute teamed up to answer. What they learned about this avocado toast eating, "I still live with my parents," social media-fueled FOMO generation might surprise you. Today, Gerri Walsh and Gary Mottola join us for part one of a two episode series to discuss the misconceptions and roadblocks millennials face in their paths to becoming investors. In part one, Gerri and Gary debunk some of the most common myths about Millennial investors and could-be-investors as revealed by the new study, "Uncertain Futures: Seven Myths about Millennials and Investing." Are you a millennial with an uncertain financial future? A financial professional looking to expand or better serve your Millennial clients? Then tune in to this episode of Unscripted and gain insig

Looking to break into the financial services industry? It is about to get easier. On October 1, 2018, FINRA will launch a new exam that consolidates the fundamental knowledge shared across several of FINRA’s existing Series exams into a single Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) exam. Additional “top-off” exams, such as the Series 7, will be trimmed down to focus only on the specific knowledge needed for that qualification—eliminating overlap in licensing exams and creating a more efficient program. And the biggest change: you don’t have to be associated with a financial firm to take the SIE exam. So get your number two pencils ready and tune in to this episode of Unscripted, where John Kalohn, FINRA’s Vice President of Testing & Continuing Education, joins us to provide insight that just might help you ace the SIE exam. Resources mentioned in this episode: Registered Representatives Brochure SIE Exam Content Outline

When you are growing up, you learn “sharing is caring.” At FINRA, Tom Gira’s Market Regulation and Transparency Services team takes that to heart when it comes to their surveillance data. In episode 13, Gira explained how the cloud and machine learning enable his team to sift through massive amounts of data–we're talking up to 101 billion market events in a single day–to detect misconduct. In this episode, we learn that Tom and his team aren't just keeping that data to themselves; they are sharing it with financial firms to help them better achieve and monitor compliance with FINRA rules. Learn how FINRA’s rapid remediation program and industry report cards are helping to foster stronger, fairer markets in this episode of FINRA Unscripted. Report Center Sweep Letter: Order Routing Conflicts Pricing Disclosure in the Fixed Income Markets

Schoolhouse Rock taught us how a bill up on Capitol Hill becomes law. Unfortunately, they never got around to explaining how a FINRA rule proposal becomes regulation. In this episode, Phil Shaikun from FINRA’s Office of General Counsel and Jonathan Sokobin, FINRA’s Chief Economist, fill that gap and explain how lawyers and economists are working together to ensure FINRA’s rules are as effective and as tailored as possible. Plus, Shaikun and Sokobin give an inside look into how the FINRA Retrospective Rule Review process works, how rules are selected for review and the myriad of possible outcomes. Resources mentioned in this episode: Retrospective Rule Review SEC Federal Register FINRA Advisory Committees Special Notice on Engagement Regulatory Notice on Membership Application Process (Comments due October 5, 2018) Regulatory Notice and Comments on Outside Business Activities

Financial technology (fintech) has revolutionized the financial industry. Need proof? Just ask yourself: when was the last time you went to a bank to deposit a check? From digital banking and mobile trading apps to Venmo, cryptocurrencies and blockchain, fintech has changed the way we manage our money and investments and the ways in which financial services companies reach and interact with their customers. So how are financial industry regulators keeping up with the newest developments and predicting their impact on the financial industry and possible regulation? For FINRA, the answer is the Innovation Outreach Initiative. In this episode, Haime Workie and Kavita Jain join us to talk about the initiative itself and share their insights on the fintech innovations that are driving market activity around the world. Resources mentioned in this episode: Fintech @ FINRA Know Before You Share: Be Mindful of Data Aggregation Risks Initial Coin Offerings: Know Before You Invest Report on Digital Investment Advice Rep

What are the principles that guide FINRA’s decision making when it comes to taking Enforcement action? That’s the question that’s been on the mind of FINRA’s head of Enforcement, Susan Schroeder, since she took on the role in mid-2017. One of the first things Schroeder did in her new role was to get right down to basics and define what an effective Enforcement action looks like – to identify clearly her team’s common goals. She wanted to ensure everyone in the group was asking the same questions and considering the same factors in the same way on every case, every day. In this episode, Susan rejoins us to discuss how getting back to basics has helped her build a more effective Enforcement team. Resources mentioned in this episode: FINRA360 Sanction Guidelines SIFMA AML Speech

Every day, FINRA processes roughly 60 billion market events. This includes stock orders, modifications, cancellations and trades from the moment orders are placed, as they move through the markets and are executed. And FINRA not only processes a massive amount of data each day, but also must analyze it to uncover misconduct. How does FINRA surveille this enormous volume of data to find instances of abusive activity? With exceedingly sophisticated technology and highly adept analysts in FINRA’s Market Regulation and Transparency Services group. Today we sit down with Tom Gira the head of the department and a 25-year veteran of FINRA. Tom explains how FINRA’s use of technology, specifically the cloud and machine learning, has improved FINRA’s quality of regulation, furthering the organization’s mission of market integrity and investor protection. Resources mentioned in this episode: Options Clearing Corporation FINRA Market Regulation FINRA Ad Hoc Committees 12: How the Cloud Has Revolutionized FINRA Technolog

When you think of financial regulation, you don’t typically think of innovation, but in fact, FINRA was an early adopter of the cloud for critical business functions. Today, FINRA has more than 30 petabytes of data in the cloud—or about 60 million years’ worth of MP3 music. With the cloud, FINRA has been able to build a massive data lake that allows its regulatory staff to conduct business more efficiently and more effectively than ever. In this episode, FINRA’s Chief Information Officer Steve Randich joins us to discuss all this and more. Plus, we learn why Steve turned down a promising career in the dishwashing industry to end up working in technology. Resources mentioned in this episode: FINRA Technology Moving Your Production System to the Cloud? 6 Things You Need to Know How the Cloud Is Changing Financial Regulation AWS Case Study *Note: * Steve misspoke when describing the size of a petabyte. One petabyte would be equal to about 2,000 years' worth of music files, so 30 petabytes would be equal to about

FINRA operates the largest securities dispute resolution forum in the United States, with disputes resolved through arbitration and mediation. But for those unfamiliar with arbitration or mediation, it can be a confusing process. What is FINRA arbitration? How might you end up with a case in arbitration or mediation? What’s the difference between the two? What does the process look like? In this episode, FINRA’s Head of Dispute Resolution, Rick Berry, answers these questions and more. For more about FINRA arbitration, visit our website.

FINRA can’t predict the future, but like a weatherman, it can make predictions based on circumstances that exist today. Tasked with that job of figuring out what is ahead is FINRA’s Office of Emerging Regulatory Issues (ERI). ERI works to predict what storms may be brewing in the securities market, what areas of the market they are likely to impact and the likely consequences of those “storms.” This allows FINRA to ensure its resources are deployed where they are needed most. In this episode, ERI’s Haime Workie and Kavita Jain join us to talk about the role of ERI at FINRA. From volatility to tax reform, we’ll hear what they think about the market’s forecast. Plus, Haime and Kavita share what products or technologies they love and what keeps them up at night. Resources mentioned in this episode: FinTech Investor Alerts

Consistency and foreseeability: that’s what any regulator strives for. But when FINRA CEO Robert Cook asked around, he heard that wasn’t always the case—particularly when it came to two different enforcement teams. Last July, FINRA responded by announcing it would bring together these two teams into One Enforcement under the leadership of Susan Schroeder, FINRA’s Executive Vice President and Head of enforcement. In this episode, Susan shares what she is doing to bring these two teams together, tells us why the integration is so important and details her greatest challenges so far. Resources mentioned in this episode: FINRA360

8: The Senior Helpline: Addressing the Unique Needs of Senior Investors “Can we make a difference? Can this actually work?” Those are the questions FINRA’s Yvette Panetta and her team asked themselves when they launched the Securities Helpline for Seniors. Three years later, the answer to both questions is clearly yes. Since April 2015, FINRA’s Senior Helpline has helped nearly 13,000 senior investors with everything from simple questions, such as “how do I find out more information about my broker,” to serious concerns, including potential broker misconduct and allegations of fraud. Yvette Panetta, Brooke Hickman and Robert Mascio share how they helped develop the Senior Helpline into more than just another call center, but rather into a valuable resource for senior investors and FINRA member firms alike. Resources mentioned in this episode: 844-57-HELPS (844-574-3577) Monday – Friday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Eastern Time

7: One FINRA: A Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion Do you show your true self at work? Or do you censor your emotions and self-expression to align with your work’s established environment? If you censor yourself, you’re not alone. Now imagine an organization where you could bring your “100 percent authentic self” to work. FINRA’s Audria Lee explains that if diversity is being invited to the party; inclusion is being invited to dance. FINRA strives to achieve both because both are essential to an organization’s long-term success. Diverse and inclusive work environments see greater employee satisfaction, engagement and creativity, as well as greater overall company productivity and success. Guests Audria Lee and Denise Fields are leaders advancing workplace equality at FINRA and serve as an example for the greater financial services industry. Hear them discuss FINRA’s Diversity and Inclusion programs, initiatives, successes and challenges, and share strategic steps and actionable tips employers can take to

Our tech-connected world faces threats against our data and technology. Both people and businesses must be vigilant to avoid a breach. In this FINRA Unscripted episode, hear from John Brady, FINRA's vice president for cybersecurity, as he talks to FINRA's Mike Rote about what his team does to combat threats and tips you can use in your life to be cyber secure. Watch: Listen:

5: A Touch Point for Politicians and Other Regulators: FINRA’s Office of Government Affairs It is 2018. America is facing a wave of new government appointments and upcoming elections at all levels of the government. And with new leaders, come new priorities. Effective government relations are essential to FINRA’s success. So, how does FINRA navigate the changing environment? According to FINRA’s Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Greg Dean, by building and maintaining genuine relationships and by telling FINRA’s story. In this episode of FINRA Unscripted, Dean shares how FINRA has achieved success in the government affairs space. Resources mentioned in this episode: OATS Senior Helpline

4: Investing Smarter Do you have student loan payments every month? If you do, you’re not alone. Almost 70 percent of US grads leave college with student debt. And many are entering the job market in debt and entirely unprepared to manage their own finances. This is exactly what happened to our guest today, Gerri Walsh. It wasn’t until Gerri’s law school graduation day that she learned how much she had incurred in student loans, and it was more than she ever imagined. So today, Gerri works to make sure what happened to her, doesn’t happen to anyone else. Gerri is the head of FINRA’s investor education efforts and the FINRA Foundation is here today to help make us all smarter investors. Resources mentioned in this episode: FINRA Foundation Investor Resources