The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has announced potential rule changes, which would allow firms and their advisors more flexibility related to branch office registration and remote inspections.
FINRA stated that "the proposed rules aim to clarify supervisory responsibilities in the era of remote work." FINRA's proposals have not yet been sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for approval.
FINRA has allowed remote inspections temporarily, but that will expire on December 31. To deal with the challenges presented by remote work, FINRA is proposing a "pilot program." The program will allow firms to undergo remote inspections in a hybrid work environment. The program will help FINRA gather knowledge about effective supervision.
FINRA also expects to revamp its guidelines concerning when firms are required to report material changes in business operations based on their number of offices, according to AdvisorHub.
In addition to proposing to revamp its guidelines, FINRA plans to continue to suspend its requirement that firms register temporary locations. Moving forward, the regulator has proposed to suppress advisors' home addresses from appearing on BrokerCheck in an order to protect their privacy.
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