A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority panel says that Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) securities division in the U.S. must pay Jeffrey Howard, an ex-executive that it fired, $2.05M in compensatory damages because of the way he was let go. The bank must also retract his termination and expunge his regulatory…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is accusing Winston Wade Turner, a former registered representative with Pruco Securities Inc. and MetLife Securities Inc., of misconduct related to the exchanges and sales of variable annuities. Turner allegedly persuaded clients to exchange certain investments, including variable annuities, which compelled them to surrender existing…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has barred broker George Johnson from the industry. The regulator is accusing him of market manipulation involving the artificial inflation of a penny stock’s value. FINRA claims that Newport Coast Securities, which is the last firm where Johnson worked, let its brokers engaging in churning.…
In a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration case, Raymond James Financial Services Inc. (RJF) has been ordered to pay David B. Silipigno $593,540 plus 3 years and 9 months of interest. That’s an award of about $795,000. According to Silipigno’s attorney, the securities arbitration case involved an RIA who may…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Securities and Exchange Commission’s’ Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has issued an investor alert recommending that investors get to know the risks before deciding to invest in securities-backed lines of credit, also known as SBLOCs. Although SBLOCs can be a major revenue…
SEC Files Charges in $1.9M Broker Scam A California man is facing Securities and Exchange Commission charges. The regulator is accusing Gregory Ruehle of fraudulently selling purported stock in a medical device company and keeping investors’ money. The unregistered broker purportedly raised about $1.9M from over 100 investors but did…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is accusing VFG Securities of failing to supervise brokers to make sure that clients’ portfolios did not become overly concentrated in illiquid investments. In its complaint against the brokerage firm, the regulator said that from 11/10 to 6/12, VFG made nearly 95% of revenue from…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has put out a new investor alert warning about advertisements that are marketing higher-than-average CD yields. The self-regulatory authority says that some of the ads might be an attempt to get investors to buy a much more much more expensive investment, such as a fixed…
Brokerage Firms to Pay $1.2M for Not Applying UIT Discounts The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has charged Next Financial Group Inc., Stephens Inc., and Key Investment Services with failing to grant sales charge discounts when certain customers that were buying unit investment trusts were eligible for the reduced rates. The…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is sanctioning J.P. Turner & Co. for violating a rule mandating that brokers must make sure that municipal securities transactions between a customer’s account and the firm’s account occur at a price that is “fair and reasonable.” The SRO contends that the firm’s supervisory system…