Finra is aiming to have best practice guidance on conflicts of interest by early this summer, the regulator’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Richard Ketchum said Tuesday.

He called conflicts of interest the largest enterprise risk for many broker-dealer firms.

During an SEC compliance conference for broker-dealers in Washington, D.C., Ketchum said continuing review and focus on conflicts is necessary. “It is not something that should be waited on,” he said, but noted that conflict management has improved in recent years.

Susan Axelrod, executive vice president of Finra's Member Regulation Sales Practice area, said she has found every firm defines "conflict of interest" differently. “I cannot stress [conflict of  interest] training enough,” she said.

On another issue, Ketchum complained complex financial instruments such as structured products are the cause of too many enforcement cases.

An advisor or broker-dealer should be able to explain a product to a client in five minutes, said Heather Traeger, a financial industry specialist with law firm O’Melveny & Myers.

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Global Chief Risk Officer Michelle Oroschakoff told seminar attendees that financial firms should consider upper age limits on annuities. “Annuities can be a very abused product,” she said.