# FINRA board clears four rule proposals for SEC filing after September meeting

URL: https://www.financialadvsr.com/article/finra-board-clears-four-rule-proposals-for-sec-filing-after-september-7b39d4
Published: October 8, 2026
By: Theo Marsh, Regulation Correspondent
Section: Regulation
Publisher: Financial ADVSR (https://www.financialadvsr.com)

At its Sept. 29-30 meeting, FINRA's Board of Governors approved four proposals to go to the SEC, including changes to membership reviews and CEO certification timing.

FINRA's Board of Governors approved four rule proposals for filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission at its meeting on Sept. 29-30, according to a FINRA report on the session published Oct. 8. The board also received briefings on key initiatives, including the organization's ongoing rule modernization efforts.

According to a version of the FINRA announcement carried by FinancialContent, the first proposal would amend the rules governing FINRA's review of new and continuing membership applications, with the aim of focusing the review more closely on risk. The second would make the deadline for the annual CEO certification of compliance and supervisory processes more flexible.

The third proposal would rescind the Same Quote Rule, which requires members to display the same price for any over-the-counter equity security they quote across multiple platforms. The fourth would repeal a requirement relating to cash compensation disclosure in mutual fund prospectuses, per the same announcement.

FINRA said the proposals reflect stakeholder feedback gathered through FINRA Forward, an ongoing effort to improve the organization's effectiveness and efficiency in pursuing its mission of investor protection and market integrity. The source material does not say when the proposals will be filed with the SEC, and approval by the board is a step before any SEC process rather than a final change to the rules.

FINRA Forward began on April 21, 2025, according to RegulateThis. Kroll, in a regulatory priorities publication for broker-dealers, described the initiative as the most significant organizational and rulemaking overhaul by FINRA in years, launched in spring 2025.

The board's agenda also included other briefings. According to FINRA's page for the meeting, these covered updates on its market oversight program, its AI strategy, and steps to address recommendations from a recent outside review of its enforcement program. The sources do not detail what was said in those briefings.

On governance, FINRA's website says the board has 22 members: 10 seats are designated for industry members, 11 for public members, and one for FINRA's chief executive officer. FINRA said Scott Curtis has been board chair since February 2025 and was reelected to the role at the June board meeting. Robert W. Cook is FINRA's president and CEO, according to The Org.

FINRA is a private self-regulatory organization established in 2007 as the successor to the National Association of Securities Dealers, according to ZoomInfo, which said it also took over the member regulation, enforcement and arbitration operations previously run by the New York Stock Exchange.

Key facts:
- FINRA's Board of Governors met Sept. 29-30 and approved four rule proposals for filing with the SEC, according to FINRA.
- The proposals cover membership application reviews, CEO certification timing, the Same Quote Rule and mutual fund prospectus cash compensation disclosure.
- FINRA said the proposals reflect feedback gathered through FINRA Forward, which began April 21, 2025, per RegulateThis.
- The board also received briefings on market oversight, AI strategy and responses to an outside review of enforcement, per FINRA's meeting page.

Why it matters: The proposals would ease several compliance and disclosure obligations that touch broker-dealer firms, including the annual CEO certification timing and membership application reviews. Firm leaders and compliance staff should watch for the SEC filings, since the board's approval is only the first step before any rule changes take effect.

Sources:
- FINRA: https://www.finra.org/media-center/newsreleases/2026/report-finra-board-governors-september-meeting
- finra.org: https://www.finra.org/about/governance/finra-board-governors/meetings/upcoming-finra-board-meeting-sep2026
- financialcontent.com: https://www.financialcontent.com/article/bizwire-2026-10-8-report-from-finra-board-of-governors-september-meeting
- kroll.com: https://www.kroll.com/en/publications/financial-compliance-regulation/broker-dealer-regulatory-priorities-q1-2026
- regulatethis.com: https://regulatethis.com/blog/finra-forward-regulatory-modernization-guide-2025-2026
- finra.org: https://www.finra.org/about/governance/finra-board-governors/meetings
- finra.org: https://www.finra.org/about/governance/finra-board-governors