Brokers Steal from Elderly Widow
(Dec 2013)
In our day-to-day work, we often come across brokers willing to ruin the lives of the undereducated or underprepared in order to make a quick buck. We thought we'd highlight a particularly egregious example of this from a recent Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) press release.
According to the release, Fernando L. Arevalo and Jimmy E. Caballero encouraged an "elderly widow with diminished mental capacity" to sell two annuities for approximately $300,000 and then moved the funds...
FINRA Announces Enhanced BrokerCheck System
(Nov 2013)
Yesterday the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority announced an enhanced version of their BrokerCheck system. We regularly suggest that investors consult FINRA's BrokerCheck since these records contain important information about complaints and specific actions about individual brokers and firms. According the FINRA Executive Vice President Derek Linden, investors "using BrokerCheck will encounter a more user-friendly interface that allows them to quickly find information that can help...
Study on Expungements Reveals Gap in Investor Protection
(Oct 2013)
We often encourage investors to visit the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) BrokerCheck system to check the record of their broker. The broker's record contains information about their qualifications, employment and complaint history. The completeness of the information contained within the complaint history has recently been called into question by the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA).
Last week, PIABA released a study of over 1,600 arbitration cases filed...
FINRA May Require Brokers to Carry Arbitration Insurance
(Oct 2013)
When investors suffer damages at the handsof brokers, they often turn to FINRA arbitration rather than suing in state or federal court. FINRA arbitrations are designed to "assist in the resolution of monetary and business disputes between and among investors, brokerage firms and individual brokers," and sometimes result in a monetary award. However, one problem with FINRA awards is that some brokers are unable to pay, especially brokers with small under-capitalized firms who ran fraudulent...
FINRA's Market Data Center
(Aug 2013)
FINRA has a number of useful web-based tools on their website. We mention their BrokerCheck tool quite often, as it allows investors to check on the professional background and disciplinary history of any particular broker or firm registered with the agency. Another very useful tool is their Market Data Center, which provides a wide variety of market data for free.
Perhaps the most useful aspect of the Market Data Center is the the TRACE (Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine) database. TRACE...
SEC Halts Texas-Based Forex Trading Scheme
(Jul 2013)
The SEC recently halted a foreign exchange ('forex') trading scheme run by Kevin G. White, an unregistered Plano, TX-based money manager.1 White raised $7.1 million of investor capital through KGW Capital Management and Revelation Forex Fund representing that Revelation had achieved returns of approaching 400% since January 2009.2
Investors should realize that such persistent outsized returns are extremely unlikely. Indeed, bank and brokerage records reveal that the Revelation Forex Fund did...
FINRA and BBB Launch Smart Investing Website to Educate Consumers on Financial Fraud
(Dec 2012)
The FINRA Investor Education Foundation in conjunction with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) announced the launch of their new website, BBB Smart Investing, last Friday. Smart Investing provides investors with "tools and information to help [them] better protect and manage" their money.
One useful feature that we've noted on the blog before is the FINRA BrokerCheck, a free search engine for disclosures, regulatory action and fines against brokers and brokerage firms. The search generates a...