With phase-one compliance due by April 2020, testing due to begin this December, and most specifications now confirmed, broker-dealers and trading firms have no time to lose. Harshad Pitkar, an independent CAT expert, believes smaller trading firms could address 95 per cent of data requirements within 8 weeks with the right help A leading independent expert...Continue Reading

In March this year, US stock markets announced that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) would take over as the orchestrator for the consolidated audit trail (CAT), a massive database for all equity and options trades executed on their platforms. After a history of false starts, this latest development meant that firms’ plans could now...Continue Reading

Earlier this year, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) was confirmed as the new orchestrator of the consolidated audit trail (CAT) – a huge database that will house accurate, up-to-date records of all US equity and options trades. With that settled, followed an extended period of uncertainty around what are likely to be the new...Continue Reading

FINRA is issuing this Notice to remind firms they must register with FINRA CAT, LLC (FINRA CAT) for reporting to the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT). CAT registration commenced on March 18, 2019, and will run through June 27, 2019. All Industry Members, as defined under the CAT NMS Plan, that will have a CAT reporting...Continue Reading

At FINRA’s annual conference, execs discussed which rules are being reviewed and gave an update on exam consolidation. There’s “still a lot more to come” in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s top-to-bottom review via its FINRA360 initiative, Robert Cook, the broker-dealer self-regulator’s CEO, said Wednesday. “It’s doing great; we’ve got a lot of accomplishments under...Continue Reading

Recent remarks by Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Jay Clayton regarding a market-surveillance system in the works seem to be allaying financial industry fears that it will collect investors’ personal information. Last week, Mr. Clayton told a Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association conference the agency is working on a unique customer identification for the...Continue Reading

U.S. stock exchanges have selected the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority as plan processor for the consolidated audit trail, a massive database for all equity and options trades executed on their platforms. CAT NMS, which was formed by the U.S. exchanges to establish a plan to implement the audit trail, announced the selection Wednesday. In February,...Continue Reading

US brokerage operations managers are quickly turning their attention to how they will meet the cumbersome requirements for data linkages now that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has been stepped in at the eleventh hour to operate the new consolidated audit trail (CAT). The initial phase-in of CAT — 2a and 2b– starting in...Continue Reading

CAT NMS, LLC (CAT NMS) today (27/02/19) announced that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) has been selected as Plan Processor for the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), following a vote by the Operating Committee (FINRA recused itself from the voting process). As Plan Processor, FINRA is responsible for all aspects of the continued build...Continue Reading