Lecturer Bios
Adam H. Arkel, Esq.
Adam H. Arkel is Associate General Counsel at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). In this role, he helps develop policies and rules governing FINRA member firms, including such areas as broker-dealer financial responsibility and risk oversight, regulation of derivatives, and crowdfunding.
Prior to joining FINRA, Mr. Arkel was an Associate at a large law firm in Washington, DC, where he represented firms and individuals in connection with Securities and Exchange Commission investigations and enforcement actions. Mr. Arkel completed his JD at Duke University School of Law. He completed MA and PhD degrees in political science at the University of Chicago, where his research focused on the Greater China region.
Thomas Mellett
Thomas Mellett is Head of Capital Markets Examinations for FINRA’s Member
Supervision department. He is responsible for examinations of FINRA members
that are primarily engaged in Capital Markets business activities, including
Institutional Private Placements, Investment Banking, Mergers & Acquisitions,
Product Origination & Wholesaling, and Public Finance, among others.
Prior to this
role, Mr. Mellett was the District Director of FINRA’s San Francisco District Office,
where he was responsible for the office’s examination and risk monitoring
programs. From 2013 to 2015, Mr. Mellett was a Surveillance Director during which
time he supervised regulatory coordinators who planed examinations and
conducted risk monitoring of member firms. From 2010 through 2012, Mr. Mellett
was an Examination Manager responsible for supervising routine examinations of member firms. He
transitioned into management after working as an examiner.
Mr. Mellett is designated as a Certified
Regulatory and Compliance Professional™ (CRCP™) through the FINRA Institute. Mr. Mellett holds a
bachelor’s degree in finance from Bentley University.
James Murphy
James Murphy is a Risk Monitoring Director at FINRA, and the supervisor of the Risk Monitoring team assigned to the Funding Portal membership. James began working at FINRA in March 2012 as an Associate Principal Examiner in the Membership Application Group (“MAP”) before being promoted to an Application Manager in 2015. The following year, with the onset of equity crowdfunding under Reg CF, James was given oversight of the Funding Portal membership, risk monitoring, and examination programs.
Prior to joining FINRA in 2012, James spent most of his career at Allied Irish Banks, in their New York office, managing the bank’s short and long-term USD liquidity portfolio in addition to the bank’s collateralized mortgage obligation portfolio.
Brandon Klerk
Brandon Klerk is the founder of Halyard Compliance LLC. As a former Chief Compliance Officer and FINRA regulator, Mr. Klerk has a broad regulatory compliance background on both the street and regulatory sides of the industry.
On the street side, Mr. Klerk has been the Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) and Anti-Money Compliance Officer (AMLCO) for multinational diversified financial services firms, high-frequency proprietary trading / hedge funds, investments advisors, investment companies, insurance companies, NFA members, MSRB members, IIROC Canadian Dealers, FCA members in the U.K. and more.
On the regulatory side, in prior regulatory roles within FINRA’s Member Regulation, Cause and Risk Oversight and Operational Regulation (ROORs) departments, Mr. Klerk has gained a comprehensive expertise in examining all types of financial services firms.
Mr. Klerk has substantial compliance experience in various business lines, including investment company underwriting and distribution, institutional sales & trading, proprietary trading, capital markets, research, municipal underwriting, public finance, wholesaling, municipal advisory, complex products, structured products, crowdfunding / funding portals and much more. He actively assists his clients with various compliance support services, including annual reviews, AML audits, membership applications, mock audits, ongoing consulting services and much more.
Mr. Klerk has a degree in Business Administration and Finance from Central Michigan University, a professional certification in Financial Planning from Northwestern University, and is a graduate of the FINRA Institute at The Wharton School as well as the Securities Industry Institute® (SII) at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He has also passed numerous regulatory examinations and maintains various industry designations, including the CRCP®, CFE® and CAMS®.
Mr. Klerk has participated on numerous industry committees, working groups and boards, including those of the National Society of Compliance Professionals (NSCP), the Bond Dealers of America (BDA), the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), Charles Schwab Compliance Solutions Advisory Board, FINRA and more. Additionally, Mr. Klerk has been a featured speaker at prominent industry conferences and has addressed many industry hot topics.
