Ritta McLaughlin, director of investor education and outreach at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Investor Education Foundation (FINRA)

This Stories from the Field interview features Ritta McLaughlin, who is the director of investor education and outreach at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Investor Education Foundation—also known as FINRA, Investor Education Foundation.

Ritta McLaughlin has had an interesting career path, starting as a rating agency credit analyst, then as an investment banker with states, major cities, and transportation agencies. She then went to work as Associate Treasurer for the District of Columbia. More recently, she has been a passionate advocate for investor education at two key regulatory agencies in finance: first at the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board or MSRB and currently at the FINRA Investor Education Foundation. A key role of regulatory entities in finance is educating investors about markets and how they function, conducting research about financial literacy and capability, and reaching out to underserved communities to develop skills and knowledge in financial markets.