FINRA recently released a new regulatory notice seeking comments on how to support diversity and inclusion efforts in the brokerage industry.  The notice asks for commenters to identify any FINRA rules or regulations which might be having a disparate impact on certain groups within the industry.

My sense is that the diversity and inclusion struggles industry firms face may be driven more by firm and industry culture than particular FINRA rules.  Susan Antilla wrote about the challenges women face in the industry.  Brokers of color have also faced real challenges. As Forbes covered, the numbers in asset management are particularly stark:

But in one industry, diversity numbers seem like they’re straight out of the 19th century: Firms owned by white men manage a stunning 98.7% of the $69 trillion managed by the U.S. asset management industry. That’s according to a 2019 Knight Foundation analysis, and includes hedge funds, mutual funds, real estate funds, and private equity funds. 

The FINRA notice also seems consistent with the SEC initiative on ESG reporting.