over concentration

Merrill Settles Claim for $4.25 Million Regarding Suitability Allegations

March 2, 2022 | Dan Miller

Merrill terminated 38-year Birmingham, Alabama based Advisor after settling a customer claim for $4.25 million, according to Advisor Hub and FINRA Brokercheck.

Merrill fired the advisor for “conduct including making an unsuitable investment strategy recommendation and misrepresentation to a client” tied to an options investment and also for failing “to follow Firm standards related to business communications,” according to BrokerCheck.

The customer submitted a written complaint to Merrill for unspecified damages over unsuitable sales and misrepresentations between November 2019 and November 2020, according to the CRD report for the Advisor.

FINRA To Hire A Law Firm to Review Arbitrator Selection After Judge Rebukes FINRA in Vacating a Wells Fargo Award

March 1, 2022 | Dan Miller

Bull Bear
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority hired an “independent” law firm to conduct a review of its arbitrator selection procedures after a Judge rebukes FIRNA in an order vacating a Wells Fargo award in a controversial case, according to FINRA.

Finra, whom denied any flaw in its process, hired the law firm of Lowenstein Sandler after a scathing order to vacate a Wells Fargo award. The Judge had said Finra and Wells Fargo’s lawyer appeared to have a secret agreement to strike potential arbitrators from a neutral list and questioned the fairness of the process.

The concerns were reiterated by the Public Investors Advocate Bar Association, which called for “an immediate investigation” by the Securities and Exchange Commission and hearings in Congress, and by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) in a February 10 letter.

Finra Hits Veteran Broker Over UIT (Unit Investment Trust) Sales

December 15, 2020 | Dan Miller

Bull Bear FINRA’s ongoing campaign to rein in alleged sales abuses involving short-term trading of unit investment trusts in customer accounts has led a 23-year veteran advisor to accept a $10,000 fine and three-month suspension.

Miller Stern Lawyers – 410-Law-Firm is currently investigating clients of Stifel Nicolaus and all firms and broker dealers who may be victims of, and suffered damages and losses, due to abuses such as short-term trading of unit investment trusts, breach of fiduciary duty, overcharging , and unauthorized trading.

Kurt J. Gunter, an Austin, Texas-area broker with no previous disciplinary record, accepted the sanctions for allegedly recommending more than 270 early rollovers of UITs—almost half into virtually identical portfolios—in order to generate commissions over three years while employed at Stifel Nicolaus, according to a letter of acceptance from FINRA.

The Second Largest FINRA Settlement in last decade – Merrill Lynch to pay $26 million, in part to former NH Governor Craig Benson, to settle churning allegations by Charles Kenahan

December 10, 2020 | Dan Miller

Bull Bear Miller Stern Lawyers – 410-Law-Firm is currently investigating clients of Merrill Lynch and Charles Kenahan and Dermond Cavanaugh who are may be victims of, and suffered damages and losses, due to abuses such as churning, beach of fiduciary duty, overcharging , and unauthorized trading.

According to CNBC and other new outlets, the State of New Hampshire “is ordering Merrill Lynch to pay $26.25 million in fines and restitution to the state and to an investor, the former Governor of New Hampshire, who claimed he suffered losses at the hands of a former Boston-based broker, to settle allegations including unauthorized and excessive trading”, or what is commonly known as Churning.

This is the largest monetary sanction in New Hampshire history and proportedly the second largest FINRA settlement in at least a decade.

Wells Fargo Pays $550,000 for Failing to Supervise

September 1, 2020 | Dan Miller

Miller Stern Lawyers – 410-Law-Firm is currently investigating clients of Wells Fargo Advisors who are victims of, and suffered damages and losses, due to the failure to supervise. It has been reported that Wells Fargo Advisors has agreed to pay more than $550,000 in fines and restitution for failing to follow up on warnings it received about two now-barred California brokers who piled their customers into speculative energy stocks, according to FINRA. Miller Stern Lawyers recently won a $1.5 Million award against Stifel for similar actions of piling their customers into biotechnology and health care stocks.

According to FINRA, the firm failed to investigate trading across customer accounts managed by the brokers. Red flags were raised about overconcentration in the accounts of four customers in a single, low-priced energy stock (ranging from 35.2% to 87.0%), according to a consent letter signed on Thursday by Wells Fargo Advisors CEO Jim Hays.

According to Advisor Hub, Seventy customers of the former Irvine, Calif.-based brokers ultimately lost more than $10 million when energy stocks tanked in 2014 and 2015. The advisors recommended four stocks for three years through October 2015, representing a substantial portion of assets for many of the customers, according to the acceptance, waiver and consent letter.

Customer Broker and Investment Fraud Claims to Heat Up

March 11, 2020 | Dan Miller

Bull Bear According to Advisor Hub customer complaints and litigation against brokerages will be heating up with the market turmoil. Most of the industry will likely conclude that coronavirus pandemic fears and oil wars between Russia and Saudi Arabia are the cause of the market drop and are totally out of anyone one person or companies control, however there can be broker misconduct involved in the level of losses because of things such as over-concentration and other individual account irregularities.

“The extent of losses may not be apparent to investors for three to six months, they said, and plaintiffs’ lawyers will then have to analyze portfolios and underlying claims of unsuitability to triage the ones most appropriate for litigation.”

The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite are in bear market territory down 20% from their February highs.