RW Smith President Paige W. Pierce Elected to Small Firm Seat on FINRA's National Adjudicatory Council

SEATTLE & SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

With over 60% of the vote against a three-term incumbent, Paige W. Pierce has been elected to serve as the Small Firm representative on the National Adjudicatory Council (NAC) of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), according to a FINRA spokesperson: http://www.finra.org/Industry/Regulation/Notices/2012/P197420

Ms. Pierce is President and CEO of RW Smith (www.rwsbroker.com), one of the country's leading fixed income interdealer brokers specializing in municipal securities, and is a long-time advocate for small firms.

“I am honored to serve as the voice of small firms on this important Council,” said Ms. Pierce. “Small firms are central to job and capital creation in our country. It is important for a healthy economy that we continue not only to fight to stay in business, but also to grow. For too long, small firms have been squeezed and unfairly penalized. It's time to bring balance, reasonableness and transparency back to the regulatory process.”

The NAC is the national committee that reviews initial decisions in FINRA disciplinary and membership proceedings and is tasked specifically with the handling of appeals. Ms. Pierce's term begins January 1, 2013.

FINRA is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA's mission is to protect America's investors by making sure the securities industry operates fairly and honestly. All told, FINRA oversees about 4,380 brokerage firms, about 162,845 branch offices and approximately 629,640 registered securities representatives.

To bring about positive change in the industry, Ms. Pierce serves on numerous financial industry committees including: FINRA Fixed Income Committee, The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association Small Firms Advisory Committee, Municipal Executive Committee (Steering 09-11), Emergency Calendar & Markets Committee and Municipal Securities Broker's Broker Committee (Chair 08-11).

Ms. Pierce was a co-founder of the Women in the Investment Industry PSA group and was Chair of the Pacific Region – U.S. of the Young Presidents' Organization Women's International Network from 2007 through 2009. She is currently the Network Chair of the Utah Chapter of YPO.

Founded in 1985 in Seattle, today RW Smith is one of the leading fixed income interdealer brokers in the nation with offices across the country.