FINRA Proposes Extension on CAT Timestamp Truncation Requirement

FINRA proposed a five year extension on the expiration date of a rule requiring members to truncate time stamps after the nanosecond level when reporting data to the Consolidated Audit Trail ("CAT"). 

The proposal would amend Rule 6860 ("Time Stamps"). The current rule was set to expire on April 8, 2025. FINRA proposed to extend the expiration date to April 8, 2030.

The proposed change would align with exemptive relief granted by the SEC in May 2025, known as the 2025 Timestamp Granularity Exemption. That exemption allowed firms to continue truncating time stamps rather than rounding them if their systems captured time more precisely than the nanosecond level.

FINRA filed the proposed rule change for immediate effectiveness and asked the SEC to waive the standard 30-day operative delay.