Nasdaq Expands Public Disclosure of Disciplinary Cases as $10,000 Threshold Is Removed

Nasdaq is removing the $10,000 threshold that has limited public disclosure of some disciplinary decisions, widening access to enforcement records involving the exchange’s members and people associated with them. The revised policy also calls for the publication of disciplinary complaints and more categories of decisions, rather than relying on information about selected cases.

The change to Nasdaq Interpretive Material IM-8310-3 was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 15, 2026. It became effective upon filing, with Nasdaq designating November 14 as its operative date. The distinction matters: the $10,000 figure was a threshold for releasing certain disciplinary information, not a minimum fine that Nasdaq could impose.

The disclosure framework concerns cases under the Nasdaq Stock Market’s disciplinary rules, chiefly involving exchange members and associated persons. It should not be confused with the financial-reporting obligations of companies whose shares trade on Nasdaq. The immediate effect is on which regulatory documents the public can obtain and how much of the underlying record it can read.

More disciplinary complaints and decisions will be published

Under the previous framework, Nasdaq generally released information about decisions imposing suspensions, expulsions, certain registration sanctions or fines of at least $10,000. Decisions involving specified rule violations could also qualify, and the exchange had discretion to disclose additional matters of public interest. In practice, Nasdaq already posted copies of particular decisions, principally Letters of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent, on its disciplinary website.

The amendment broadens the requirement to publish disciplinary decisions as defined in the rule, including those imposing monetary penalties below $10,000. It also formalizes the release of copies of disciplinary complaints, including complaints brought by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Department of Enforcement when acting for Nasdaq under a regulatory services agreement. The change is not simply a promise to issue more press-style summaries; it is a shift toward posting the underlying documents.

Nasdaq’s filing with the SEC explains that the term “disciplinary complaint” covers complaints under the Rule 9200 Series and certain notices issued under Rules 9400 and 9810. Those notices include proceedings involving alleged disruptive quoting and trading activity and temporary cease-and-desist measures. The definition of a disciplinary decision encompasses a range of Rule 9000 Series outcomes, including hearing decisions, accepted settlements and temporary cease-and-desist orders.

Copies of covered cases are to appear on the exchange’s public website. Nasdaq already maintains a U.S. disciplinary actions page that identifies matters by date, market, case number and respondent. Publishing eligible complaints and decisions gives readers access to the specific allegations, findings or sanctions recorded in the documents, instead of requiring them to rely only on a brief description of what happened.

Another part of the revised rule addresses eligibility determinations involving members or associated persons who have previously been subject to statutory disqualification. It provides for publication of specified decisions, notifications or notices under the Rule 9520 Series that will be filed with the SEC. Separate provisions require public information about certain final suspensions, limitations, prohibitions or other actions under the Rule 9550 Series.

The removal of the cutoff does not make every case public

The wider disclosure obligation has a defined boundary. Nasdaq’s filing expressly excludes Minor Rule Violation Plan letters issued under Rule 9216 from the new definition of disciplinary decisions. Those letters involve fines of no more than $2,500 and/or a censure under the exchange’s minor-violation procedures. Consequently, eliminating the $10,000 threshold does not mean that every lower-dollar enforcement communication will automatically be published.

Nor does the rule require Nasdaq to disclose every piece of information within a public record. On a case-by-case basis, the exchange may redact confidential customer details or material raising serious identity-theft, personal-safety or privacy concerns when those concerns are not outweighed by investor protection. The amendment also retains a narrow ability to waive publication in extraordinary circumstances where disclosure would violate fundamental fairness or work an injustice.

A published complaint must be read differently from a disciplinary decision. The updated rule requires a statement explaining that a complaint starts a formal proceeding and that its allegations have not yet been decided. A document can therefore be publicly accessible without establishing that the respondent committed the alleged violation. That qualification is especially important when prospective customers or counterparties examine an open case.

Disciplinary decisions also may be released before appeal periods expire or while a review remains pending. In those circumstances, the publication must indicate that the findings or sanctions are subject to review and possible modification by Nasdaq or the SEC, as appropriate. Public availability is not the same as finality, and the status of a case remains part of the information readers need to consider.

Closer to FINRA and NYSE disclosure practices

Nasdaq describes its revisions as substantially similar to disclosure rules already used by FINRA and the New York Stock Exchange. Both organizations provide for publication of disciplinary complaints and decisions, including eligible decisions involving fines below $10,000. Nasdaq’s change reduces a difference in how the major market regulators make enforcement outcomes visible; it does not itself establish a new fine schedule or announce an increase in enforcement activity.

Making case documents easier to find may have practical value for brokerage compliance departments. A decision can identify the conduct regulators found to violate a rule and the sanction imposed, while a complaint shows which activities enforcement staff allege warrant proceedings. The SEC’s notice of the Nasdaq rule filing says the exchange expects this additional detail to help member firms recognize conduct of concern and, where necessary, change their own practices.

The revised language also widens public notices of appeals. Nasdaq is to post notice when one of its disciplinary decisions is appealed to the SEC, stating whether its effectiveness has been stayed. It also provides for public notice if a subsequent SEC decision in an exchange disciplinary case is appealed to a court. Under the earlier provisions, some appeal-notice requirements were tied to suspensions, bars or monetary sanctions of at least $10,000.

The procedural status is distinct from a conventional SEC approval order. Nasdaq filed the amendment as a rule change eligible for immediate effectiveness, but specified a later operative date. The SEC retains authority to temporarily suspend such a filing within 60 days of submission if statutory conditions warrant, in which case it would institute proceedings to consider approval or disapproval. That authority does not, by itself, mean the rule has been suspended.

The SEC identified November 23, 2026 as the deadline for public comments on filing SR-NASDAQ-2026-089. The exchange’s operative date falls before that deadline. For anyone reviewing a newly published Nasdaq matter, the distinction between an unadjudicated complaint, a decision under appeal and a final disciplinary outcome will remain essential even as more documents enter the public record.