FINRA Fines Navaid $35,000 Over Reporting Failures Case

FINRA fines Navaid Financial Services $35,000 after finding years of municipal trade reporting failures under MSRB disclosure rules. Navaid Financial Services, Inc. agreed to pay a $35,000 fine and accept a formal censure as part of a settlement with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) over reporting and supervisory failures tied to municipal securities transactions.

According to FINRA, from May 29, 2018 through July 23, 2024, Navaid failed to include the required Non-Transaction-Based Compensation (NTBC) indicator when reporting 12,066 municipal securities transactions to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s (MSRB) Real-Time Transaction Reporting System (RTRS). Regulators said these reporting failures violated MSRB Rule G-14, which requires firms to accurately and completely report transaction data to promote transparency in the municipal bond market.

FINRA Fines Navaid $35,000 Over Reporting Failures Case

FINRA also found that Navaid failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system reasonably designed to ensure compliance with MSRB Rule G-14. From at least May 29, 2018 through June 30, 2025, the firm did not maintain adequate written supervisory procedures or controls to monitor and prevent its reporting violations. FINRA said this conduct violated MSRB Rule G-27, which requires firms to maintain effective supervision over their municipal securities activities.

As part of the settlement, Navaid agreed to the $35,000 monetary penalty and a censure. The firm neither admitted nor denied the findings.

Navaid Financial Services has operated as a FINRA member and an MSRB registrant since 1997. The firm is based in Haddonfield, New Jersey, and primarily engages in the sale of municipal debt and bonds among its business activities.

FINRA and the MSRB rely on accurate transaction reporting to ensure transparency, regulatory oversight, and investor confidence in the municipal securities market. The NTBC indicator plays a role in identifying transactions where firms receive compensation not directly tied to a specific trade. Regulators require firms to report this information so that market data remains complete and reliable.

By failing to include the required indicator in more than twelve thousand transactions over multiple years, Navaid created gaps in the municipal transaction record. FINRA said the firm’s lack of effective supervisory controls allowed the reporting issues to continue for an extended period.

The settlement concludes FINRA’s disciplinary action against Navaid related to these violations.

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