WASHINGTON – The Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) have announced a services agreement designed to ease reporting burdens and compliance costs for member firms. The new, simplified filing process will also reduce inconsistent or incomplete filing of annual audited financial statements and supplementary reports.

Effective Sept. 1, firms that currently file annual reports separately with SIPC and FINRA will file just once, using FINRA’s existing reporting portal. The portal will provide both agencies with the information, enabling the firms to meet the two agencies’ respective reporting requirements with a single filing.

“SIPC is pleased to have completed this arrangement with FINRA to simplify the filing requirement with SIPC for annual reports,” said Stephen P. Harbeck, President and CEO of SIPC, which currently receives more than 3,500 such reports each year. “The agreement also complements similar work that FINRA has done with its client exchanges to reduce duplicative reporting by common member firms.”

FINRA President and CEO Robert W. Cook said, ““Streamlining a regulatory filing requirement in a manner that reduces burdens on firms while preserving important investor protections is consistent with the goals of FINRA360, our ongoing review of our regulatory programs and operations. We appreciate the opportunity to work with SIPC on this initiative.”

About FINRA

FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity. It regulates one critical part of the securities industry – brokerage firms doing business with the public in the United States. FINRA, overseen by the SEC, writes rules, examines for and enforces compliance with FINRA rules and federal securities laws, registers broker-dealer personnel and offers them education and training, and informs the investing public. In addition, FINRA provides surveillance and other regulatory services for equities and options markets, as well as trade reporting and other industry utilities. FINRA also administers a dispute resolution forum for investors and brokerage firms and their registered employees. For more information, visit www.finra.org

About SIPC

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation is the U.S. investor's first line of defense in the event of the failure of a brokerage firm owing customers cash and securities that are missing from customer accounts.