Finra laying off five enforcement officials, report says

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. is laying off five enforcement officials, according to a Dow Jones
reporttoday.
The officials include Katherine Malfa, vice president and chief counsel, Rory Flynn, vice president and chief litigation counsel, Evan Rosser, vice president of strategic planning, and Michael Armelin, an assistant director, the report said.
A fifth unidentified person from Finra’s New York office is also being let go, the news service reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Finra has experienced a drop in revenue in line with a drop in industry revenue. A year ago, it offered an early-retirement package to about 10% of its 3,000 employees.
Staff changes are also being driven by the integration of legacy NASD staff with employees from the New York Stock Exchange’s regulatory division, sources said. Those two entities merged in 2007 to create Finra.
“At two and a half years out from the creation of Finra, we continue to look at ways to streamline our management structure,” Finra spokesman Herb Perone said in a statement.
Mr. Perone said neither Finra’s enforcement head count or budget will be reduced.
“If the reason [for the layoffs] is that Finra is streamlining management, that I can get,” said Alan Wolper, an attorney at Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell LLP and a former Finra district director in Atlanta.
“They are, unfortunately, midlevel managers, and in corporate reorganizations, those are the guys who are deemed to be expendable,” he said.
All of the individuals named in the Dow Jones story “are very talented and highly regarded,” said Sylvia Scott, an attorney at Freeman Freeman & Smiley LLP and former head of enforcement in Finra’s Los Angeles office.
Ms. Scott said the affected Finra officials should have no problem finding new jobs.

Related Topics: Financial Industry Regulatory Authority