SIFMA Statement on the Delay of the CAT Customer and Account Information System

Washington, D.C., May 27, 2022 – SIFMA today issued the following statement from president and CEO Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr. on the delayed implementation of the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) Customer and Account Information System:

“SIFMA believes the SROs were correct to delay the implementation of the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) Customer and Account Information System until the fourth quarter of 2022.  This will assist firms in addressing reporting challenges and allow time for other issues to be remediated. When fully implemented, the CAT will be the largest database of retail and institutional trading data ever created.  It also will include personal information on every retail brokerage customer in America, as well as identifying information for every pension fund, mutual fund, and other institutional account in America.  The need to get it right is essential.  To that end, we once again call on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to adopt its August 2020 CAT data security proposal, which is designed to significantly enhance the security of data held within CAT.”

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SIFMA is the leading trade association for broker-dealers, investment banks and asset managers operating in the U.S. and global capital markets. On behalf of our industry’s one million employees, we advocate on legislation, regulation and business policy affecting retail and institutional investors, equity and fixed income markets and related products and services. We serve as an industry coordinating body to promote fair and orderly markets, informed regulatory compliance, and efficient market operations and resiliency. We also provide a forum for industry policy and professional development.

SIFMA, with offices in New York and Washington, D.C., is the U.S. regional member of the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA).