Broker-dealer Arbitration Law Firm

Are You An Investor Who Suffered Losses While Working With a Western International Securities Financial Advisor?

Our FINRA Lawyers Are Investigating Ex-Western International Securities Broker Daniel Beech

Over the past year, Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas, a Broker-dealer Arbitration Law Firm, (investorlawyers.com) have filed FINRA lawsuits on behalf of investors seeking to recover financial losses allegedly caused by the allegedly negligent actions of Western International Securities and a number of its financial advisors. We are also continuing to investigate the brokerage firm and its registered representatives for allegedly unsuitably recommending GWG Holdings L Bonds and other high-risk investments to retail customers and retirees.

One of the registered representatives we are scrutinizing is ex-Western International Securities broker Daniel Keith Beech who left the firm in 2022. He is currently involved in several pending customer disputes, including one seven-figure FINRA lawsuit. Investors say that he allegedly unsuitably recommended and sold GWG L Bonds and other illiquid, risky investments, such as Procaccianti Hotel REIT and InvenTrust Properties Corp., to them.

Beech, who left Western in Westlake Village, CA in 2022, is now a registered broker with Innovation Partners in Charlotte, North Carolina.

What Should You Do If You Suspect That Your Western International Securities Registered Representative Engaged in Broker Misconduct or Negligence?

It is important that you explore your legal options right away especially if you suffered significant investment losses. One way to do this is to contact one of our skilled brokerage firm arbitration attorneys so that we can help you determine whether you have grounds for a FINRA lawsuit against the firm.

Western International Securities has a fiduciary duty to properly supervise not just its customers’ accounts but also the activities of its financial advisors. This includes identifying any red flags indicating possible overconcentration, churning, or other broker misconduct and placing a stop on any negligent activities that could cause investment losses for their clients.

Like all broker-dealers, Western is also required to conduct the proper due diligence to ensure that all investments are legitimate and suitable for each customer given their investing profile, age, risk tolerance level, and financial goals. Yet recently, Western International Securities is not only being sued by investors alleging otherwise, but also it has been the subject of scrutiny over whether it properly supervised a number of financial advisors who are accused of making unsuitable investment recommendations and committing broker negligence.

In June 2022, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed its first-ever Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) lawsuit with Western International Securities as a defendant. The Commission accused the firm of allegedly violating the best interests of customers by recommending L Bonds even when they were too risky for them given their investing profile and risk tolerance levels. GWG Holdings Inc, which issued $1.6B of these junk bonds, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April.

In late October 2022, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ordered Western International Securities to pay over $871K for its alleged failure to properly supervise its brokers who purportedly unsuitably recommended non-traded real estate investment trusts (non-traded REITs) to investors. The self-regulatory organization also accused Western of not reporting in a timely manner some 45 customer complaints, securities arbitration cases, and investor settlements.

If your investor losses were, in fact, caused by broker negligence involving a Western International Securities registered representative, you may be able to pursue damages in FINRA arbitration.

Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas Broker Misconduct Attorney Kirk Smith talks about if a brokerage firm is liable for their financial advisor’s wrongful or negligent actions:

Our savvy broker-dealer arbitration law firm has decades of experience representing retail customers, retirees, high-net-worth individual investors, and institutional investors against their broker-dealers. Through arbitration, mediation, and litigation, we have collectively recovered millions of dollars for thousands of clients. Call (800) 259-9010 today.