Regulatory Entities and Agencies

CBOE

Chicago Board Options Exchange The world's largest options exchange, which is also tasked with regulating the options marketplace and options trading.

FDIC

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation A US government corporation that insures customer bank deposits. Note that the SIPC protects brokerage accounts (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc.), while the FDIC protects bank accounts (savings and checking accounts).

the Fed

Federal Reserve The central bank in the US, responsible for determining the amount of money in circulation to influence economic growth, inflation, unemployment, and currency exchange rates. The Fed has three main tools to achieve its goals; 1) open market transaction, 2) the discount rate, and 3) reserve requirements.

FinCEN

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Works with banks and other financial institutions to prevent financial crimes, such as money laundering.

FINRA

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Focuses on protecting investors through the registration and regulation of brokerage firms and their employees. FINRA is the entity that requires qualification exams, including the SIE.

IRS

Internal Revenue Service Responsible for collecting tax revenue and administering tax laws.

MSRB

Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board Responsible for regulating the municipal securities industry and all securities firms and professionals involved in the trading, underwriting, sales, and advertising of municipal securities.

NASAA

North American Securities Administrators Association In addition to federal regulation, each state has securities laws in place designed to protect the investing public. NASAA is the advisory body of state securities regulators that creates many of these laws and state-registration requirements. Theses state regulations are often referred to as blue sky laws.

OFAC

Office of Foreign Assets Control Maintains a list of persons, entities, and countries that the US is prohibited from doing business with. Examples include terrorists and countries for which the US has sanctions, such as North Korea.

SIPC

Securities Investor Protection Corporation A non-for-profit corporation that protects customer brokerage accounts in the event that a broker-dealer goes bankrupt.

SEC

the Securities and Exchange Commission You can think of the SEC as the "top watchdog" of the securities industry. It is the government agency primarily responsible for enforcing federal securities laws, such as the Securities Act of 1933, which regulates new issues of securities, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which regulates the secondary marketplace, including securities trading and exchanges.