FINRA released a regulatory notice regarding the 2014 Renewal Program for broker-dealers, investment adviser firms, agent and investment adviser representatives, and branch renewals. The 2014 Renewal Program begins on November 11, 2013, when FINRA makes the online Preliminary Renewal Statements available to all firms on Web CRD/IARD. The statements include the fees for Web CRD system processing, FINRA branch office and branch processing, state broker-dealer firm, branch, and agent renewal, and state investment adviser firm, branch and representative renewal. The notice indicates that full

The OCC released the economic and financial market scenarios that will be used in the next round of stress tests for large financial institutions. Concurrently, the OCC also issued the final "Policy Statement on the Principles for Development and Distribution of Annual Stress Test Scenarios." The scenarios include baseline, adverse, and severely adverse scenarios, as described in the OCC's final rules that implement stress test requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act. Separately, the guidance outlines the consultative processes that the OCC will use to gather information on material vulnerabilities

The CFTC is requesting public comment on a certification from MarketAxess SEF Corporation to implement available-to-trade determinations for certain interest rate and credit default swaps. MarketAxess submitted its available-to-trade determinations to the CFTC on a self-certified basis, pursuant to CFTC Rule 37.10 ("Process for a swap execution facility to make a swap available to trade") and Rule 40.6 ("Self-certification of rules"). If MarketAxess' submission is deemed certified by operation of CFTC Rule 40.6, such swap contracts, whether listed or offered by MarketAxess or any other

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System issued the supervisory scenarios that will be used in the 2014 capital planning and stress testing program, as well as instructions to firms with timelines for submissions. The program includes the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review ("CCAR") of 30 bank holding companies with $50 billion or more of total consolidated assets. Each of the companies in the CCAR in 2014 must submit its capital plans by January 6, 2014. See: 2014 Supervisory Scenarios for Annual Stress Tests Required under the Dodd-Frank Act Stress Testing Rules and the

SIFMA submitted a comment letter expressing reservations as to the MSRB's concept release on pre-trade and post-trade pricing data dissemination through a new central transparency platform ("CTP"). SIFMA commended the MSRB for seeking to make improvements in transparency and access to information in municipal securities markets. However, SIFMA stated that too much information "for the sake of it" can be harmful by causing confusion and obscuring the material information. SIFMA suggested that the MSRB allow time for the full impact of these recent changes to take place before making further