Investor Lawyers Blog

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently sanctioned broker Daniel Grieco based allegations that Grieco made unsuitable recommendations of non-traditional exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to customers. Non-traditional and “leveraged” ETFs can pose significant risks not presented by ordinary ETFs. Traditional ETFs often seek to mirror an index or benchmark, and track the performance of the asset…

Cushing Royalty & Income Fund (NYSE:SRF), an exchange-traded fund that traded at $25 in February 2012 ,currently trades at less than $5. It is a leveraged fund which invests in oil and gas royalty trusts that was reportedly sold in some cases to elderly and conservative retirees who did not understand the risky nature of…

Securities Litigation Consulting Group of Fairfax, Virginia has estimated that shareholders of non-traded REITs are about $50 billion worse off for having put money into non-traded REITs rather than exchange-traded REITs. The estimate is based on the difference between the performance of more than 80 non-traded REITs and the performance of a diversified portfolio of…

A FINRA arbitration panel awarded $1 million to an investor whose portfolio was over-concentrated in UBS Puerto Rico closed-end bond funds. The 66 year-old conservative investor reportedly “lost $737,000 of his nearly $1 million portfolio when the value of UBS’ Puerto Rico municipal bond funds collapsed in the fall of 2013.” When the client expressed…

Inland American REIT has changed its name to Inventrust Properties Corp. In addition, the Company’s SEC fillings report a recent tender offer of $2.00 per unit from Mackenzie Realty. The $2.00 a share tender offer represents a sharp dropoff from Inland American’s initial offering price of $10.00 a share. Inland American is an enormous company-…

Douglas William Finlay, Jr., a stockbroker formerly associated with Cadaret, Grant & Co., has entered into a Letter of Acceptance Waiver and Consent (AWC) with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) to settle a case in which FINRA alleged that Finlay over-concentrated a customer’s assets in an unsuitable illiquid real estate investment trust (REIT). In…

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently fined LPL Financial $10 million fine and ordered it to pay $1.7 million in restitution to investors who lost money with LPL brokers. The charges levied by FINRA alleged widespread supervisory failures involving securities such as nontraditional exchange-traded funds, variable annuities and non-traded real estate investment trusts (or…

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) records show that broker Christopher Veale (Veale) has been the subject of multiple customer complaints as well as other regulatory proceedings arising out of his dealings with customers. FINRA records indicate that Veale has had at least 12 customer complaints, as well as six judgments, levied against him. FINRA records…

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) recently sanctioned and barred stockbroker Matthew Davis due to allegations of misconduct while Davis was associated with Beneficial Investment Services, Inc. from November 2008, through April 2010. Davis was later employed by OneAmerica Securities, Inc. from April 2010, through July 2013. FINRA’s charges allege that Davis misappropriate customer funds,…

South Florida financial advisor Ariel Hernandez, was reportedly arrested and accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from customers. Hernandez allegedly transferred funds out of customer accounts and into accounts in his name, in the process allegedly forging a customer’s signature. Authorities in the South Florida community of Pembroke Pines have charged Hernandez with…