Rules proposed by FINRA may soon allow credit unions and other financial institutions to restrict activity on accounts belonging to some members they feel are being financially exploited.

The rules would permit 15-day holds (longer ones, in some cases) on accounts held by members who are either 65 and over or over 18, and whom the institution "reasonably believes" have mental or physical impairments that render them unable to protect their own interests. Many credit unions offer investment products through third-party brokerage agreements with FINRA member firms, and the proposed rules would denote people who can place a temporary hold on a disbursement as "qualified persons," which would mean associated persons of a firm who serve in supervisory, compliance or legal capacities that are reasonably related to a member's account.

FINRA would also require firms to make reasonable efforts to obtain the name of and contact information for a trusted person who is not authorized to transact business on the account but may be contacted about the member's account. Firms may then inform trusted persons when a hold is placed on an account, according to the proposed rules.