Mitchell Atkins – FirstMark’s Founder

Mitchell Atkins has over 26 years’ experience in the securities industry. Of this, he spent 20 years at FINRA (formerly NASD).  He started his career in the industry at NASD (now known as FINRA) as an examiner trainee and worked in every role in the FINRA Member Regulation district office structure. After serving in various examiner and examination manager roles, he was appointed Associate Director in charge of the Long Island Office.  In 2005, he was tasked with the startup and staffing of the Florida District Office in Boca Raton, becoming District Director. Later, he was appointed as Regional Director for FINRA’s South Region which included oversight of the Florida, Atlanta, Dallas and New Orleans district offices, overseeing the examination programs covering approximately 850 broker-dealers. Soon thereafter, he was promoted to Senior Vice President and Regional Director. In this role he served as a member of FINRA Member Regulation’s Senior Management Team.  In 2013, he left a rewarding career at FINRA and founded FirstMark Regulatory Solutions.

Over twenty-six years of experience in complex regulatory environments.

While at FINRA, Mr. Atkins was a key participant in many critical corporate initiatives such as the transformation of the Member Regulation examination program in 2002 and again in 2012. He oversaw the development and initial operation of FINRA’s National Anti-Money Laundering Examination Unit which is managed from Boca Raton, Florida.  Earlier in his career at NASD, Mr. Atkins led a special investigations group which handled national sweep examinations covering topics such as: day-trading and electronic trading, brokered certificates of deposit, variable contract sales, and abuses in public finance.  He was designated by NASD as a national expert in the area of Mutual Funds and Variable Annuities.

In his consulting practice, Atkins focuses on complex anti-money laundering compliance projects, including AML independent testing, mandated undertakings, and expert consultation. He focuses on supervisory controls testing and development of complex supervisory systems. Additionally, he handles all types of membership applications, from simple additions of business lines to complex ownership changes.

Mitchell Atkins frequently addresses industry groups.  He has been invited to be a panelist at regional and national conferences sponsored by FINRA (the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority), ACFCS (Association of Certified Financial Crime Specialists), FMA (Financial Markets Association) and LISA (Life Insurance Settlement Association).  While at FINRA, he was a presenter at conferences sponsored by BISA (Bank Insurance & Securities Association), FSDA (Florida Securities Dealers Association), IIR (Institute for International Research), LIMRA (Life Insurance and Market Research Association), and many others.

Mr. Atkins is a graduate of the FINRA Institute at the Wharton School where he earned his designation as a Certified Regulatory and Compliance Professional (CRCP).  He graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and an additional concentration in Accounting. He has completed the Center for Creative Leadership’s Leadership Development Program, and the FINRA Leadership Program at Wharton. He is a Newfield Certified Coach (NCC) through the Newfield Network (U.S.) in Niwot, Colorado.

Mitchell Atkins is a member of the SIFMA Compliance and Legal Society and the Florida Securities Dealers Association.