BNP Paribas Securities Corp. has agreed to pay a $600,000 fine and accept a formal censure from Nasdaq Phlx LLC for widespread failures in maintaining accurate records of manually routed options orders between 2019 and 2023.
BNP Paribas Securities Fined $600,000 By Nasdaq Phlx
In a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent published by Nasdaq Phlx, the firm was said to have violated multiple recordkeeping and supervisory rules, including US securities law and Phlx’s own procedural standards.
Specifically, the firm reportedly failed to correctly record order receipt, transmission and execution times for an estimated 139,511 manually routed options trades.
Nasdaq Phlx added that the violations also extended to inadequate supervisory procedures.
According to the firm, BNP Paribas did not maintain an effective system for detecting discrepancies, in part because the incorrect timestamps appeared in the correct sequence in its systems. As a result, repeated errors went unnoticed.
The letter stated that the firm “failed to establish, maintain, and enforce written supervisory procedures” designed to detect and prevent such breaches.
BNP Paribas neither admitted nor denied the findings but agreed to the sanctions to resolve the matter. Of the $600,000 fine, $150,000 will be paid directly to Nasdaq Phlx.
The firm has also waived its right to a formal complaint, hearing or appeal as part of the settlement process.
