A brokerage or financial firm that is a member of at least one organized stock exchange, commodities exchange, or other forms of securities exchange is referred to as a member firm. The rights and privileges to trade on the exchanges to which they belong are granted to member businesses. Individual members of a firm’s professionals are usually awarded membership rather than the brokerage itself.
A member is often a trading or brokerage business (or broker) that has been approved for participation on a regulated securities exchange. The number of “seats” in an exchange refers to the number of individual members.