NOTE: Stipulations of Fact and Consent to Penalty (SFC); Offers of Settlement (OS); and Letters of Acceptance Waiver, and Consent (AWC) are entered into by Respondents without admitting or denying the allegations, but consent is given to the described sanctions & to the entry of findings. Additionally, for AWCs, if FINRA has reason to believe a violation has occurred and the member or associated person does not dispute the violation, FINRA may prepare and request that the member or associated person execute a letter accepting a finding of violation, consenting to the imposition of sanctions, and agreeing to waive such member's or associated person's right to a hearing before a hearing panel, and any right of appeal to the National Adjudicatory Council, the SEC, and the courts, or to otherwise challenge the validity of the letter, if the letter is accepted. The letter shall describe the act or practice engaged in or omitted, the rule, regulation, or statutory provision violated, and the sanction or sanctions to be imposed.
MML Investors Services failed to timely file Forms
U5 and amendments to
Forms U4 and U5.
The firm’s failure to
comply with its reporting
obligations may have hampered the investing public’s ability to
assess the background of
certain brokers through FINRA’s public disclosure program,
rendered certain information
unavailable to member firms making hiring determinations, may have
reduced the ability
of state securities regulators to review applications by brokers
to transfer firms, and
hindered FINRA from promptly investigating certain disclosure
items.
The firm’s supervisory system and procedures were not
reasonably designed to
achieve compliance with the reporting requirements of Article V of
FINRA’s By-Laws. The
firm failed to enforce the written procedures it had adopted to
prevent late disclosures
to FINRA. The firm did not enforce a sanctions policy for late
filings of Forms U4 and U5
that it had implemented. That firm policy was updated to
strengthen the sanctions for
late disclosures to the firm. There were numerous instances of
late filings in which the
firm either failed to issue a letter of warning to the
representative or failed to fine the
representative as called for by its procedures. Although
the firm’s procedures called for the termination of any
representative who failed to
timely disclose three reportable events to the firm, it did not
terminate at least two such
representatives. There were also instances in which the firm
failed to sanction supervisors
as called for by its procedures.
MML Investors Services, LLC: Censured; Fined $300,000; Required to
* review its supervisory systems and WSPs for compliance with its reporting obligations concerning the timely filing of Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4) disclosure amendments and the timely filing of Uniform Termination Notices for Securities Industry Registration (Forms U5) and Form U5 amendments,
* certify in writing to FINRA within 90 days of the issuance of the AWC that the firm currently has in place systems and procedures reasonably designed to achieve compliance with its reporting obligations under FINRA’s By-Laws, Article V, 11 January 2012 Sections 2(c), 3(a) and 3(b) with respect to the timely filing of required Forms U4 and U5, and amendments thereto;
* within 15 days following the end of each quarter in calendar year 2012, the firm will submit a report to FINRA detailing any Form U5 filings or disclosure amendments to Forms U4 and U5 that were not timely filed with FINRA that quarter, and an officer of the firm will certify in writing to FINRA that the submitted report is accurate.