In its "Small Firms Notice" dated 1/5/11, FINRA reminds firms to complete the mandatory annual review of the information maintained in the FINRA Contact System (FCS) this month, between January 3 and 26 -(first 17 business days of the year).   FCS tracks whether the annual review is completed within the review period.

For instructions on performing the review, see print-out below, or go to:  the updated [FCS Annual Review Guide].

    NASD Rule 1160 requires firms to update designated contact information promptly upon any material change, verify such information annually and comply promptly with any request for such information via FCS. 

For further details, see [RegNote 7-42].  

FINRA Contact System  (From FCS Annual Review Guide)

    Instructions & Help.   FINRA rules require that member firms maintain a list of firm contacts in the FCS. You should update your firm's contact information within 30 days whenever changes occur and confirm the information on record for some positions (Exec Rep, AML, BCP, etc.) on an annual basis. The Program Details page provides additional information, including links to related rules and Notices.
 
    Logging into the FCS.    You must be a properly entitled staff member of a FINRA member firm in order to access FCS. If you do not have entitlement, please see your firm's Account Administrator, who can update FCS on your behalf and/or grant you access to the Contact System. Please note that your firm must have a FINRA "Approved" status before you can complete any updates to FCS.
     To log into the FINRA Contact System:

• Go to the FCS Login Page: https://regfiling.finra.org/contacts/fcs_contacts.aspx.
• When prompted, enter your FINRA Entitlement login information.
• If you have forgotten your login information or cannot login successfully, please contact your firm's Account Administrator for assistance. If you are the Account Administrator, please call the FINRA Call Center at (301) 869-6699.
• Upon successful login, your firm’s status home page will be displayed.

Please Note: During 2010 and early 2011, FINRA is introducing changes to the Entitlement Program, including a new Super Account Administrator (SAA) role at each firm. The SAA can create, modify and delete account administrator and user accounts for FINRA applications that firms use. See Information Notice 3-24-10 for details.

If your firm has designated an SAA, please contact this individual for changes to your user account. To determine whether your organization has an SAA, log in via the Firm Gateway, click on "My Account" and view information from the "Applications & Administrators" link. If your firm has not yet designated an SAA, please use the forms below to request access to (insert your application).

    FCS Guides.   Each guide will provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to complete each section in FCS, please select the appropriate guide below:

• Business Mix (types of business conducted by your firm)
• Contact Management (contact information for the key roles/positions at your firm)
• Annual Review (required annual review of key contacts and related Information)

    FAQ's.   Browse/ search our FAQ database for additional information.

    Additional Assistance.  

• Call the FINRA Gateway Call Center at (301) 869-6699.
• Send us an email.