MarketAxess Corporation has agreed to pay a fine of $180,000 as a part of a settlement with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

From November 2008 to September 2020, MarketAxess reported approximately 53,000 transactions—consisting of 51,252 corporate bond transactions and 2,446 U.S. Treasury transactions—to the Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE) with inaccurate execution times. For approximately half of these transactions, the time of execution was inaccurate by one second.

From 2013 to 2020, MarketAxess also reported 399 of the corporate bond transactions to TRACE more than 15 minutes after the time of execution. These inaccurate and late reports occurred due to a technological error, which the firm resolved in September 2020.

Therefore, MarketAxess violated NASD Rules 6230(c)(8) and 2110 and FINRA Rules 6730(a), 6730(c)(8), and 2010. In addition, MarketAxess’s late reporting constituted a pattern or practice of late reporting without exceptional circumstances, in violation of FINRA Rule 2010.

From April 2016, when the firm first began reporting municipal transactions to MSRB Real-time Transaction Reporting System (RTRS), to May 2023, MarketAxess reported 57,340 transactions to the RTRS with an inaccurate time of trade due to the firm’s incorrect interpretation of time of trade.

For a majority of these transactions, the execution time was inaccurate by one second. MarketAxess also reported 123 of these transactions to the RTRS more than 15 minutes after the time of trade.

Therefore, MarketAxess violated MSRB Rule G-14.

From November 2008 to January 2022, MarketAxess failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system and written supervisory procedures (WSPs) reasonably designed to achieve compliance with TRACE reporting obligations.

From April 2016 to January 2022, MarketAxess failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system and WSPs reasonably designed to ensure compliance with MSRB RTRS reporting obligations. Specifically, the firm’s supervisory system, including its WSPs, did not include reasonable reviews to ensure that accurate execution times were reported to TRACE and RTRS.

Starting in January 2022, MarketAxess’s WSP required that the firm perform automated surveillance of TRACE and RTRS reporting, including timestamps, and conduct a manual review of any surveillance alerts.

Based on the foregoing, MarketAxess violated NASD Rules 3010 and 2110, FINRA Rules 3110 and 2010, and MSRB Rule G-27.

On top of the $180,000 fine, the firm has agreed to a censure.