On March 2, 2026, Bill St. Louis, FINRA’s executive vice president of Enforcement, published a statement outlining changes that FINRA has implemented as part of the broader FINRA Forward initiative to increase transparency, improve efficiency and provide member firms with greater opportunities to be heard. Of particular note, FINRA’s recently implemented pilot program, which is intended to give firms the opportunity to self-report, investigate and remediate compliance issues without simultaneously having to respond to an investigation or examination of the matter.
Securities Regulation
The SEC’s New Regulatory Agenda = 180 Degree Turn from Prior Administration
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today released its much-anticipated “Spring” regulatory agenda. The agenda removes more than a dozen items from the Fall 2024 agenda and adds nearly double that to the Spring 2025 agenda. The two proposed rules that remain from Fall 2024 had their titles (and substance) changed (e.g., the “Rule 144 Holding Period” became the “Rule 144 Safe Harbor” and “Foreign Issuer Reporting Modernization” became “Foreign Private Issuer Eligibility”).