Securities Fraud

Ex-F-Squared CEO Still Battling SEC, Firm Dealing With Fallout from Securities Fraud Charges

Published on: March 27, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

F-Squared Investments Inc. has laid off 40 workers-that’s one-fourth of its staff-as it continues to deal with the ongoing asset losses in the wake of the securities fraud charges filed against it by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last year. During a routine examination, the regulator discovered that the asset management company allegedly had deceived investors by claiming its performance history was based on a real trading record going as far back as 2001 when F-Squared had just back-tested its algorithm. F-Squared is the biggest marketer of index products using ETFs (exchange-traded funds).

The SEC accused the firm of falsely promoting its AlphaSector investment strategy and its supposed excellent track record as based on its investment performance for real clients instead of the backtesting. Due to a calculation error, the results were inflated by 350%.

F-Squared settled the SEC charges for $35 million and the firm’s new CEO, Laura P. Dagan, said that F-squared has been putting more effort into compliance and its main product line. However, in the last several months, investors have withdrawn billions of dollars from F-squared strategies while several brokerage firms refuse to let advisers put more funds into the strategies.

Financial Fraud Victims’ Suffering is More Than Just Monetary, Affirms FINRA Report

Published on: March 17, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

According to “Non-Traditional Costs of Financial Fraud,” which is a new research report by the FINRA Investor Education Foundation, almost two-thirds of financial fraud victims who reported that they’d been bilked experienced at least one non-financial consequence to a serious degree. The findings show other ways in which this type of crime takes a toll on its targets.

Some 600 fraud victims took the survey online. Respondents were at least 25 years of age. Among the findings:

• The most commonly named non-financial fraud costs included serious stress, anxiety, sleeping problems, and depression.

Ex-Nomura, RBS Trader Enters Guilty Plea to Bond Fraud

Published on: March 11, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Matthew Katke, formerly of Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS) and Nomura Holdings (NMR) has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud for his involvement in a multi-million dollar bond scam to bilk customers. As part of his deal he will cooperate with prosecutors into its investigation of mortgage-linked bonds and collateralized debt obligations.

Katke traded securities that were backed collateralized loan obligations, which are high-yield corporate debt. The charge is related to activities he engaged in while at RBS. Prosecutors say that Katke and co-conspirators made misrepresentations to get customers to pay prices that were inflated and sellers to say yes to deflated bond prices. The scam took place from around 2008 to June 2014.

Court documents say that Katke and co-conspirators sought to profits on bond trades through the false statements they gave customers. They misrepresented the prices that RBS had paid to get a bond or what it was asking to sell it. They also misled clients about whether a bond was from RBS’s inventory or a third party. RBS is cooperating with the probe.

Bill Seeks to Eliminate Mandatory Arbitration Clause From Brokerage Contracts, While SEC Approves New Public Arbitrator Limits

Published on: February 27, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The Investor Choice Act in Congress, A U.S. House bill written by Keith Ellison, D-Minn., is looking to stop investment advisers and brokers from obligating investors to pursue their claims in arbitration instead of going to court. The proposed legislation would bar pre-dispute mandatory arbitration clauses in contracts between clients and their representatives.

As of now, almost all brokerage agreements, and an increasing number of investment adviser ones, come with provisions mandating that investors take their disputes to the arbitration system, which is run by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. There are those that believe that the forum favors brokers and advisers. Meantime, others say that the arbitration system is much more efficient for investors than going to court.

This is not the first time that Ellison has pushed for ending mandatory arbitration. He unveiled a similar bill in 2013 but it did not become law. The Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association has put out a statement voicing its support for Ellison’s latest bill, which it says gives investors back their right to choose whether they want to take their dispute to court or arbitration.

SEC Cases: Brothers-In-Law Charged in Louisiana Insider Trading Scam, NY-Based Broker-Dealer Accused of CDO Liquidation-Related Fraud, & Colorado Ponzi Scam is Halted

Published on: February 20, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The Securities and Exchange Commission is charging former VP of The Shaw Group’s construction operations Scott Zeringue and his brother-in-law Jesse Roberts III with insider trading. Zeringue has already agreed to settle the regulator’s charges by consenting to pay disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus a penalty.

The SEC says that the insider trading took place in 2012 when Zeringue, while working at The Shaw Group, became privy to confidential data about the company’s upcoming acquisition by Chicago Bridge & Iron Company. Prior to the announcement of the deal, he bought 125 shares of Shaw stock and asked Roberts to buy for him, too. Roberts went on to tip others and they collectively made close to $1 million in illicit profits.

Meantime, parallel criminal charges have been filed against Roberts. Zeringue has already pleaded guilty to the criminal charges against him.

U.S. Bank National Association Must Pay $18M to Peregrine Customers, Says Court

Published on: February 18, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A district court issued a Consent Order placing a permanent injunction against the U.S. Bank National Association and mandating that the bank return $18 million to customers of Peregrine Financial Group, Inc. customers.

US Bank has offices in Iowa where Peregrine, a non-bank, nonclearing FCM (Futures Commission Merchant), and its owner Russell Wasendorf were based. Peregrine was also The bank was the depository for the non-bank and it held an account for customer-segregated funds that Wasendorf accessed when bilking over 24,000 clients. Some $215M was misappropriated.

In July 2012, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission put out a civil action against Peregrine and Wasendorf. The latter has pled guilty to criminal charges and received a 50-year sentence. He also has to pay over $215M in restitution.

SEC Cases: Insider Trading Charges Filed Against Georgia Resident, Mutual Fund Adviser Accused of Improper Asset Handling, & Two-Ex CFOs Agree to Give Back Bonuses Because of Accounting Fraud

Published on: February 14, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Atlanta, GA Man Accused of Making $740,000 for Insider Trading

The Securities and Exchange Commission is filing charges against a Georgia man who is accused of insider trading and making about $740,000 in illicit profits. Charles L. Hill allegedly traded in Radiant Systems stock based on the confidential insider data a friend gave him about an upcoming tender offer to purchase the company. The friend was a friend of a Radiant Systems executive.

In 2011, Hill bought about 100,000 shares valued at close to $2.2 million on the final day of trading prior to the public announcement of the acquisition. That was his first time buying stock of Radiant Systems, and before that it had been years since he’d purchased equity securities.

Securities Fraud Cases: NY Hedge Fund Manager Bilks Investors of Over $800K, Maize Fund Scam Leads to Restitution, Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims Get $355M, and Kentucky Scheme Ends with Probation, Compensation

Published on: February 13, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

SEC Says New York Hedge Fund Manager Stole From Investors

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission says that Moazzam Malik, a purported hedge fund manager in NYC, stole money from investors. Malik allegedly falsely claimed to be running a hedge fund holding about $100 million in assets under management. He is accused of touting high returns.

Malik raised over $840,000, but his fund, which didn’t make actual investments, never held over $90,177 in assets. Instead, he kept taking out money and spending the funds. He refused to give investors back their money, even pretending to be a fund employee and sending out an e-mail saying that he had passed away. Mailk purportedly kept soliciting investors even as he received redemption requests.

Oppenheimer to Pay $20M Settlement to the SEC and FinCEN Over Penny Stock Violations

Published on: January 28, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Oppenheimer & Co. (OPY) has consented to pay $20 million to resolve settlements with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The firm is accused of not properly identifying and reporting suspect trades in penny stocks. The low priced, highly speculative securities are easy to manipulate and involve in pump-and-dump scams.

At least 16 Oppenheimer customers in several U.S. states were reportedly identified as having engaged in “suspicious activity.” Admitting guilt, the broker-dealer acknowledged that it did not set up and implement a proper anti-money laundering program nor did it perform sufficient due diligence on a foreign correspondent account. Oppenheimer also said that it failed to comply with the USA PATRIOT Act’s Section 311, which allows FinCEN’s director to decide whether a foreign financial firm is a money laundering risk.

The government agency said that because Oppenheimer did not notify its foreign correspondent financial institutions of the special measures under Section 311, the firm ended up conducting business without setting up the necessary procedures, policies, and internal controls that allow it to reasonably report and detect suspect fraud activity from ’08 to ’14.

John Carris Investments Expelled by FINRA

Published on: January 27, 2015 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A FINRA panel has expelled John Carris Investments LLC, along with Chief Executive Officer George Carris from the securities industry. Both are accused of suitability violations and fraud.

According to the panel, Carris and JCI were reckless when selling shares of stock and promissory notes. They purportedly left out material facts and used misleading statements. Both have been barred for manipulating Fibrocell’s stock price via the unfunded purchases of big stock blocks and engaging in trading that was pre-arranged through matched limit orders.

The FINRA panel said that JCI and Carris acted fraudulently when they did not reveal the poor financial state of parent company Invictus Capital yet sold the latter’s stock and notes. Material facts were purportedly left out of offering documents. Rather than shutting down operations when it ran out of net capital compliance, JCI kept selling Bridge Offering notes to investors and using money from the sales to remedy its net cap deficiency while not telling customers that was were the money went. Offering sales were also used by Carris to cover his personal spending.