Order Audit Trail System (OATS)
FINRA has established the Order Audit Trail SystemSM (OATS SM), as an integrated audit trail of order, quote, and trade information for Nasdaq® securities. FINRA will use this audit trail system to recreate events in the life cycle of orders and more completely monitor the trading practices of member firms. Under NASD Rules 6950 - 6958, FINRA member firms are required to develop a means for electronically capturing and reporting to OATS specific data elements related to the handling or execution of orders, including recording all times of these events in hours, minutes, and seconds, and to synchronize their business clocks. These Rules were approved by the SEC on March 6, 1998. On July 31, 1998, the SEC approved amendments to OATS Rules 6954 and 6957 and NASD Rule 3110. The amendments clarify the recording and recordkeeping requirements associated with the OATS Rules.
FINRA Business and Technology Support Services is the primary source of information about OATS. It has expanded its hours of operation.Technology support is available from 8 a.m. Monday to 7:30 a.m. Saturday. Business support is available from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Contact Business and Technology Support Services
Please provide your name, title, firm's name, firm's Broker-Dealer Number (if applicable), and a phone number when contacting Support Services by phone, fax or email.
NOTE: The phone menu has been updated. If you have a case ID from an existing case, select 1 and enter your six-digit case ID; otherwise, to obtain OATS support, select 3. For best service, use your case ID when contacting FINRA about a problem that has previously been reported.
