Posts belonging to Category Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonFebruary 6, 2012
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has issued a Regulatory Notice (12-03, Jan. 2012) to “remind” its member firms of their sales practice obligations with regard to complex products, and to provide them “guidance” in exercising heightened scrutiny and supervision over marketing and sales of complex products. Complex products are not defined in the Notice, but […]
Categories: A General Overview, Alternative Investments, Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Derivatives, Early Retirement Scams, Elder Abuses, Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), Fairness/Just & Equitable Conduct, Hedge Funds, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investment Malpractice, Investor Alerts, Limited Partnerships, Misrepresentation/Omission, Mortgage Backed Securities, Nontraded REITs, REITs, Reverse Convertibles, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Smart Investing Tools, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct, Structured Notes, Unsuitable Recommendations
Posted by Page PerryonJanuary 24, 2012
The declining public trust in the financial services industry confirms the serious problems permeating the industry. A recent survey by the public relations firm Edelman revealed that more than half of the educated public distrusts firms in the financial services sector, making it the nation’s least-trusted sector for the second year in a row (See […]
Categories: A General Overview, Brokerage Firms, Investment Advisers, Investment Malpractice, Investor Alerts, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonJanuary 4, 2012
The SEC is going after advisory firms and their principals that misrepresent facts that bear on their experience and credentials on form ADVs. Such violations suggest an intent to mislead investors. (“ADV crackdown on, as SEC says firm claimed $200M in AUM, had $3M,” InvestmentNews).
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Early Retirement Scams, Elder Abuses, Fairness/Just & Equitable Conduct, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investment Malpractice, Investor Alerts, Misrepresentation/Omission, Regulatory Developments, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonDecember 27, 2011
Whether from “outright bribery and the hope of future job offers” or “ideological conformity and the desire for good relationships and a peaceful life,” the Securities and Exchange Commission is a “captured” agency controlled by Wall Street. That is why the SEC allows the likes of Citigroup to sell its clients a product that Citigroup […]
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Fairness/Just & Equitable Conduct, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investment Malpractice, Investor Alerts, Misrepresentation/Omission, Regulatory Developments, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct, Unsuitable Recommendations
Posted by Page PerryonNovember 21, 2011
Concerns have developed that certain stock brokerage firms have misused “senior” designations in a manner that is misleading to investors. In fact, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. (FINRA ) is warning Wall Street brokerage firms about the use of special “senior” designations when marketing investments products.
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Early Retirement Scams, Elder Abuses, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investor Alerts, Regulatory Developments, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Smart Investing Tools, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonOctober 14, 2011
State regulators uncovered 3,543 unethical practices and rule violations, an average of 4.3 violations per advisory firm, during the first half of this year. Among the violations that InvestmentNews, an industry publication, found to be especially noteworthy were individual advisers falsely designating themselves as “registered investment advisers.” See “States: Advisers violating rules by using ‘RIA,’” […]
Categories: Common Securities Broker Abuses, Fairness/Just & Equitable Conduct, Hedge Funds, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investor Alerts, Misrepresentation/Omission, Private Investments/Reg D, Regulatory Developments, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct, Unsuitable Recommendations
Posted by Page PerryonOctober 4, 2011
Raymond James affiliates have been ordered to pay $2.1 million in fines and restitution to more than 15,500 of its customers for overcharging them in 27,000 transactions. Raymond James customers paid nearly $1.7 million in excess commissions, according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). In addition, FINRA found that Raymond James’ supervisory systems were […]
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Elder Abuses, Fairness/Just & Equitable Conduct, Investigations, Investment Advisers, Investment Malpractice, Investor Rights, Raymond James, Regulatory Developments, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonMay 16, 2011
Concerned that securities industry zealots and a Republican Congress will succeed in delaying an SEC rule that would require brokers who provide retail investment advice to act solely in their client’s best interest, investor advocates are stepping up their campaign to urge the SEC to move forward with a rule, according to an InvestmentNews article […]
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Investment Advisers, Investor Rights, Regulatory Developments, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Smart Investing Tools, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonMay 12, 2011
With Republicans pressuring the Securities and Exchange Commission to back off, there is a good chance that the SEC will not promulgate a new fiduciary-standard any time soon, according to Evan Cooper’s InvestmentNews article entitled “The B-S solution to the fiduciary issue.”
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Investment Advisers, Market Developments, Regulatory Developments, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct
Posted by Page PerryonMarch 28, 2011
In a decision “likely to ripple across Germany’s banking sector,” a German court ruled that Deutsche Bank failed to disclose the “real and ruinous” risks and its “gross conflict of interest” in selling interest rate swaps to a business client, according to a Wall Street Journal article entitled “Deutsche Bank Loses Swaps Case” by Laura […]
Categories: Brokerage Firms, Common Securities Broker Abuses, Derivatives, Deutsche Bank, Investor Rights, Securities, Securities/Commodities Arbitration, Securities/Commodities Litigation, Stockbroker Standards of Conduct