Number of BDs, Reps Drops for Second Straight Year, New FINRA Report Says
August 09, 2018 By Melanie Waddell, ThinkAdvisor Small BDs "struggle with keeping up with burdensome FINRA requirements," recruiter Jon Henschen said. The number of broker-dealers and registered representatives continues to decline, with firms registered with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority dropping to 3,726 in 2017 from 3,835 in 2016. The number of registered reps fell last year as well, dropping to 630,132 in 2017 from 635,902 in 2016. That’s according to the broker-dealer regulator’s just-released 2018 Industry Snapshot, a first annual statistical report on the brokerage firms, registered individuals and market activity that FINRA regulates. FINRA states that it is sharing the statistical overview as part of fulfilling transparency goals under the FINRA360 initiative. Data ranges from the size and geographic distribution of the firms FINRA regulates to the number of individuals in the industry, along with...