A new rule proposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would let consumers sue banks over a variety of financial products, including bank accounts, private student loans, money-transfer services, installment loans, payday loans, prepaid cards, and credit cards, and certain types of loans. The proposed rule would also prohibit arbitration…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed civil charges against professional sports gambler William Walters. He is accused of making $40M from an illegal stock tip given to him by former Dean Foods Company board member Thomas C. Davis. The regulator said that Davis, who owed Walters money, gave him…
The Texas Court of Appeals for the Fifth District has upheld a $2.1M judgment for a client of Houston Securities Fraud Attorney Sam Edwards of Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas. The ruling ordered Morgan Keegan to pay $2.1M for not telling investors about the actual risks involved in a mortgage-backed…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has awarded new whistleblower awards to individuals who have come forward with original and helpful information that have allowed the government to pursue significant securities cases against offenders. By law, a whistleblower is entitled to 10-30% of money garnered when a monetary sanction obtained exceeds…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is fining Raymond James Financial Inc. https://www.securities-fraud-attorneys.com(RJFS) and Raymond James & Associates (RJA) $17M. The self-regulatory organization is accusing the company of widespread failures related to anti-money laundering compliance. According to FINRA, from 2006 to 2014 the processes that the firm had in place to…
The Financial Industry Regulatory authority has broadened its list of public arbitrators to preside over cases. The self-regulatory organization will provide dispute participants with the names of 15 public arbitrators, instead of 10, from which to choose. FINRA’s Board also modified its eligibility requirements for who can chair an arbitration…
Former Thrivent Investment Management Inc. broker Miguel Angel Hernandez is now barred from the brokerage industry. According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc., he defrauded an older woman whom he met at church. He allegedly took $25K in ’10 but paid her back in ’15 after the misconduct was…
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a unanimous ruling allowing investors to sue Bank of America Corp’s Merrill Lynch (BAC) and other brokerage firms in New Jersey state court even though the lawsuit cites federal laws. The plaintiffs, who are Spectrum Group International Inc. investors, claim that they sustained investment…
According to research, some financial fraudsters may try to manipulate investors by getting them to feel strong emotions so that they will hand over their money, and older investors are the ones who most vulnerable to this type of manipulation. Research was conducted and funded by the FINRA Investor Education…
Bloomberg reports that according to sources, Matt Gardiner, a former UBS Group AG (UBS) trader who was part of the instant-messaging group the federal government identified when obtaining guilty pleas from Barclays PLC (BARC), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), UBS, Citigroup (C), and JPMorgan Chase & Co.(JPM) over currency-rate manipulation,…