69W-600.0031. Notice-Filing of Branch Office (FINRA Dealer)

(1) New Notice-Filings.

(a) Every Florida branch office of a broker dealer registered in Florida shall be notice-filed with the Office of Financial Regulation (Office) prior to engaging in business therefrom. A broker dealer must be registered with the Office before its branch offices may notice-file. Branches of dealers who are members of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) shall file the Uniform Branch Office Registration Form (Form BR) electronically through the Central Registration Depository of FINRA (CRD) as prescribed by the Financial Services Commission (Commission). The notice-filing shall include all information required by such form, any other information the Office may require, and payment of the statutory fees required by Section 517.1202(2), F.S. The notice-filing fee shall be deemed received by the Office on the transaction date (Trans DT) reflected on the Central Registration Depository of FINRA (CRD) “disbursement detail” report.

(b) A notice-filing shall include the following:

1. Form BR (04/2014). A sample form is hereby incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06080.

2. Statutory fee in the amount required by Section 517.1202(2), F.S.

(2) Branch Office Designation. A branch office may or may not be designated as an Office of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJ) at the discretion of the registrant. For each branch office designated as an OSJ, a supervisor shall be designated as a principal and registered with the Office. The designated principal shall have passed the examination(s), administered by a national securities association or a national securities exchange registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, to supervise the activities of the branch office and its associated persons and be registered with the Office as set forth in Rule 69W-600.002, F.A.C. For offices not designated as an OSJ, the registrant must specify the OSJ and the supervisor(s) at the specified OSJ that supervise(s) the branch office. Additionally, the registrant must specify the person(s)-in-charge physically located at the branch office. The person(s)-in-charge must be registered as set forth in Rule 69W-600.002, F.A.C.

(3) Amendment of Notice-Filing. If the information contained in the Form BR becomes inaccurate or incomplete for any reason after the branch office notice-files, including changing the location of the branch office or the supervisory personnel thereof, the dealer shall amend the information by filing a complete and originally executed Form BR with the Office within thirty (30) days of the change and denoting thereon that the information reported is an amendment to a previous filing. The Form BR shall be filed with the Office through the CRD as set forth in subsection (1) of this rule. Failure to file amendments, as provided herein, shall be considered a violation of Section 517.1202(6), F.S.

(4) Alternate Business Name. It is prohibited for any branch office to conduct securities business in this state under any name other than that of the dealer with which the branch office is notice-filed unless each of the following conditions is met:

(a) The business conducted does not violate or evade any provision of Chapter 517, F.S.;

(b) The business conducted does not fall within the definition of “dealer” or “investment adviser” as used in Chapter 517, F.S.; and,

(c) The dealer with which the branch office is notice-filed has received written notice of the name under which business shall be conducted.

(5) Renewal Requirement.

(a) Renewal fees for branch offices of FINRA member firms shall be submitted through the CRD by December 31 of the year the notice-filing expires as required by Section 517.1202, F.S.

(b) For branch offices of FINRA members, failure of the firm to submit the requisite amount of fees as provided for in paragraph (5)(a), by December 31 of the year of expiration of the notice-filing shall result in the notice-filing not being renewed. If December 31 falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday pursuant to Section 110.117, F.S., the renewals received on the next business day shall be considered timely received. However, an expired notice-filing may be reinstated in accordance with the provisions of Section 517.1202(3), F.S., provided that all requisite information and fees are date stamped by the cashier’s office of the Department of Financial Services on or before January 31 of the year following the year of expiration. Failure to submit the requisite amount of fees necessary to reinstate the notice-filing by January 31 of the year following the year of expiration shall result in the notice-filing not being reinstated. If January 31 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday pursuant to Section 110.117, F.S., the reinstatement received on the next business day shall be considered timely received. In the event that the renewal or reinstatement is withdrawn or not granted, any fees filed to renew or reinstate the notice-filing shall become the revenue of the state pursuant to the provisions of Section 517.1202(8), F.S., and shall not be returnable.

(6) Termination of Branch Office. Where a branch office cancels or otherwise terminates notification, or is terminated for any reason, notice of such fact shall be electronically filed with the Office on the Form BR through the CRD within thirty (30) calendar days of the date of cancellation or termination.

Rulemaking Authority 517.03(1), 517.1202 FS. Law Implemented 517.12(8), 517.1202 FS. History–New 12-29-15, Amended 11-26-19, 2-14-23.