According to FINRA, ABN AMRO Capital Markets (USA) LLC was censured and fined $50,000 in January 2026 for conducting a securities business on 84 days while failing to maintain the minimum net capital required under SEC and FINRA rules, for maintaining inaccurate books and records, and for filing inaccurate financial reports with regulators—all stemming from an improper classification of a financial transaction.FINRA found that the New York-based firm entered into a reverse repurchase transaction with its parent bank involving U.S. Treasury securities held as collateral in a segregated account owned by, and in the name of, the parent bank. Because the collateral was neither in the firm's possession or control, nor outside the parent bank's control, the firm should have treated the entire contract value of the reverse repurchase agreement as a non-allowable asset in its net capital calculations. Instead, it improperly classified the transaction as an allowable asset. This misclassification resulted in the firm operating with net capital deficiencies that ranged from approximately $1,900 to approximately $8.3 million, with an average deficiency of approximately $665,000 over the relevant period.The misclassification also caused the firm to file inaccurate Financial and Operational Combined Uniform Single (FOCUS) reports with regulators. These reports overstated the firm's net capital by amounts ranging from approximately $23 million to $25 million—a significant discrepancy that hindered regulators' ability to effectively monitor the firm's true financial condition. The firm also failed to file timely notices of its net capital deficiencies, which meant that FINRA and the SEC remained unaware of the problem until it was discovered during a FINRA examination.Net capital requirements exist to ensure that broker-dealers maintain sufficient liquid assets to meet their obligations to customers and counterparties. When a firm operates below minimum net capital levels, it poses heightened risk to clients and market participants who depend on that firm to fulfill its obligations. Accurate FOCUS reporting is essential for regulators to perform meaningful financial oversight. Investors should be aware that FINRA monitors broker-dealer financial health and takes action when firms fall below required capital thresholds, even when the underlying cause is a technical misclassification rather than intentional fraud.