Lecturer Bios
Sarah S. Kwak, Esq.
Sarah S. Kwak is Associate General Counsel in FINRA’s Office of General Counsel,
specializing in sales practice regulatory policy with a particular focus on the FINRA
rules governing the membership application process, supervision, and customer
account statements.
Prior to joining FINRA, Ms. Kwak was an Assistant Vice
President at Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith and served as a judicial law clerk
for United States Bankruptcy Court Judge Barry Russell of the Central District of
California. She holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of California at
Irvine and a J.D. from Washburn University School of Law.
Jessica Pastorino
Jessica Pastorino has been involved in the securities industry since 2006 with a focus on compliance and operations for privately-placed transactions including capital raising and M&A advisory services.
As President and Chief Compliance Officer for M&A Securities Group, Ms. Pastorino runs a firm that offers a broker-dealer platform for independent middle-market investment banking professionals and boutique advisory groups. Ms. Pastorino believes in a solution-based approach to compliance challenges. Ms. Pastorino holds her Series 24, 79, 62, 22, 39 and 63 licenses.
Ms. Pastorino earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in English at California State University Long Beach and serves as a member of the FINRA District and FINRA CAP committees.
Gina Rettagliata
Gina Rettagliata joined FINRA in 2003 and is Examination Director located in the
Woodbridge, New Jersey office. She leads a geographically dispersed team of Exam
Managers responsible for planning and executing Member Supervision’s
examination program relative to a subset of firms engaged primarily in retail sales.
She brings several years of industry experience to her role, including as Vice
President and AML Compliance Officer of a major online trading firm. Mrs.
Rettagliata has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of
South Florida and is a graduate of the FINRA Institute at Georgetown Certified
Regulatory and Compliance Professional (CRCP)® program.
