Texas Securities Fraud: IMS Securities Settles FINRA Case Alleging Inadequate Supervision of Wholesale Representatives

IMS Securities Inc. has settled a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority case accusing the Houston-based brokerage firm of inadequately overseeing its wholesale representatives. Per the SRO’s claims, IMS Securities allegedly failed to customize its supervisory system to its business in a manner that could allow it to be in compliance with securities laws and FINRA rules. However, despite agreeing to the $100,000 fine and censure, the financial firm is not admitting to or denying the findings.

Per FINRA, IMS Securities failed to supervise several wholesale representatives for nearly the first four years of their employment and had insufficient WSP’s detailing the steps for assessing certain securities products (even though the financial firm sold number of direct participation plans and privately-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs)). The regulator also said that there was one year when the financial firm did not conduct annual audits at two of its OSJ branches, and, for close to two years IMS Securities failed to properly maintain sales/purchase blotters, checks forwarded/received blotters, and other receipts and financial records.The SRO believes that not only did IMS Securities’ wholesale representatives send securities business-related electronic communications through outside email addresses but also, the firm did not keep the emails.

Texas Securities Fraud
If you were the victim of Texas securities fraud or if you are a Texan investor who has lost money because of investor fraud, please contact Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas, LTD, LLP. Our main office is in Houston, Texas, but we also have offices in New York, NY, Chicago, IL, Los Angeles, CA, San Francisco CA, and Troy, MI.

Related Web Resources:
FINRA BrokerCheck

FINRA Disciplinary Actions (PDF)

More Blog Posts:
Texas Courts Show Preference for Arbitration to Resolve Securities Fraud Claims and Other Business Disputes, Stockbroker Fraud Blog, February 15, 2013

Texas Securities Criminal Case Against Oil and Gas Company Executive Can Proceed, Rules Fifth Circuit, Stockbroker Fraud Blog, February 6, 2013

Citigroup Ordered by FINRA to Pay $1.2M Over Bond Markups and Markdowns, Institutional Investor Securities Blog, March 27, 2012