Russell M. Fecteau

Of Counsel

Russell is a former senior attorney at FINRA who leverages his prior experience as a regulator in enforcement, regulatory counseling, and internal investigations involving the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), FINRA, and state regulators. He represents broker-dealers, fintechs, and financial professionals in investigations and examinations involving best execution, markups/markdowns, short sales, Regulation M, securities lending, margin requirements, customer confirmations, Regulation BI, the Market Access Rule, and anti-money laundering issues. Russell counsels clients on trade reporting requirements for municipal securities, corporate bonds, securitized products, agencies, and Treasuries.

report

2020 Year in Review and a Look Forward: Select SEC and FINRA Developments and Enforcement Cases

Extended Profile

Russell advises clients on options and equity trade reporting requirements involving the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), the various FINRA Trade Reporting Facilities (TRFs), and the electronic blue sheets (EBS). Russell also advises clients on compliance with reasonable supervision system requirements, including written supervisory procedures.

Russell is proficient at all phases of SEC and FINRA reviews. He routinely responds to written regulatory requests from the SEC, FINRA, and state regulators. He has represented financial advisors and supervisors in SEC depositions and FINRA on-the-record interviews. He has drafted white papers and Wells responses to clarify facts and provide legal advocacy for clients in pending SEC and FINRA matters. He has advised clients on self-reporting considerations and customer remediation efforts involving the SEC and FINRA to maximize the available cooperation credit in a given case. When appropriate, he has negotiated case resolutions with the SEC and FINRA.

Selected Representations

Advised firms in SEC reviews concerning primary and secondary market trading activity in municipal bonds
Counseled firms in SEC matters involving compliance with Regulation SHO
Represented firms and individuals in FINRA matters involving best execution and markup/markdown reviews in fixed-income securities
Advised firms in CBOE matters concerning pre-trade risk management controls and intermarket sweep orders
Counseled firms in self-reports to FINRA involving large-scale customer remediations
Represented firms and individuals in FINRA matters involving cross trades and potential wash sale transactions
Counseled firms on enhancements to written supervisory procedures in information wall cases
Advised firms in FINRA matters involving trade-reporting requirements for fractional shares