Patrick Burns

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  White Pledges to Weigh Cost of Fiduciary Rule as Ketchum Revives SRO Fight

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  April 1, 2013

  Just as incoming Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairwoman Mary Jo White has pledged to lawmakers that she would carefully weigh the costs of a fiduciary rulemaking, Richard Ketchum, CEO of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), is renewing his call for a self-regulatory organization to oversee advisors.

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  Wirehouses Embrace FINRA Broker Bonus Plan

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  March 14, 2013

  Three wirehouses have given their OK to FINRA’s plan to require that brokers’ recruitment packages be disclosed when they switch firms.

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  FINRA’s Broker Bonus Rule Seen as ‘Done Deal’ With SIFMA OK

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  March 6, 2013

  Securities lawyer Patrick Burns told AdvisorOne that with SIFMA's support, the “proposal’s chances of becoming a new rule seem to be a done deal.”

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  FINRA Seeks Second Round of Comments on Markups, Commissions Plan

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  February 5, 2013

  After being deluged with comments against its plan to end a 5% threshold on commissions and markups, FINRA is giving broker-dealers yet another chance to weigh in.

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  FINRA Advances Bonus Disclosure Plan for Brokers

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  January 7, 2013

  FINRA fulfilled its promise to seek comments on its controversial plan to require brokers to disclose their pay packages.

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  FINRA Reaches for Feedback on Broker Comp Disclosure Rule

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  December 10, 2012

  FINRA’s board announced Friday that it would seek comment on its controversial plan to require brokers to disclose their compensation packages to clients.

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  FINRA to Mull Broker Compensation Disclosure Rule

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  November 29, 2012

  December Board meeting will consider several rule proposals and amendments, chief among them a proposal that would require broker-dealers to disclose compensation packages to customers.

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  The Bonus Debate

  By Bob Clark, AdvisorOne  |  October 31, 2012

  Much as I believe that investors everywhere would benefit from a level playing field between RIAs and brokers, the disclosure of recruiting bonuses would be over the top.

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  Should Brokers Be Forced to Disclose Their Bonuses to Clients?

  By Gil Weinreich, AdvisorOne  |  October 30, 2012

  SEC Chairwoman Mary Schapiro in 2009 wrote a letter to broker-dealer CEOs warning them about recruiting brokers with high upfront bonuses.

• Avoiding Breakaway Protocol Missteps

  By Gil Weinreich, AdvisorOne  |  August 23, 2012

  A team of Merrill Lynch advisors who left for Morgan Stanley in April were caught trying to remove boxes containing confidential customer information, becoming a cautionary tale for brokers tempted to break protocol.