SEC Reviews of FINRA Bans Not ‘Final’ if Penalty Pending

The SEC’s decision that a broker violated the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s rules isn’t final if the industry self-regulator is still considering a penalty, the Ninth Circuit said.

FINRA, a company that acts as a self-regulator to member firms, issued three separate bans on a broker, Trevor Saliba: one for allegedly violating FINRA’s interim restrictions on his company; another for his alleged role in backdating compliance forms; and a third related to testimony about his computers.

The Securities and Exchange Commission upheld the first two bans. In reviewing the third ban, the SEC upheld FINRA’s findings that Saliba failed to ...