Even after the slew of municipal bond fraud arbitration claims from investors blaming UBS AG (UBS) for their losses sustained in Puerto Rico municipal bonds, the brokerage firm has told its brokers to continue selling the funds to clients. However, notes the broker-dealer, representatives should make sure to evaluate their…
Investor Lawyers Blog
SEC Approves Regulations Involving REIT Prices and Arbitration Fraud Intervention
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has approved a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority-proposed rule that would create greater transparency of Nontraded real estate investment trusts. Under the new rule, investors will have to be provided with more information about the costs involved in buying shares of nontraded REITs. With the…
SEC Wants to Bar Ex-Broker for Allegedly Misappropriating $2M
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has taken action to bar Paul Marshall, an ex-investment adviser and broker from the industry. Marshall is accused of misappropriating $2M in client assets. Last year, the SEC charged him and his related investment advisers, Bridge Securities and Bridge Equity Inc., with fraud. The…
Pension Fund Securities Lawsuits: JPMorgan to Face MBS Case, PERSM Files Class Action Case, & Institutional Clients Can Sue BP
JPMorgan Ordered to Face $10B Mortgage-Backed Securities Case A federal judge said that JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) must face a class action securities fraud lawsuit filed by investors accusing the bank of misleading them about the risks involved in $10B of mortgage-backed securities that they purchased from the firm…
Ex-Ameriprise Adviser Pleads Guilty To Nearly $1M Fraud
SusanWalker, an ex investment adviser with Ameriprise Financial Inc. (AMP), has pleaded guilty to bilking two dozen clients of $980,000. She stole the funds from clients between ’08 and ’13, using the money to cover her own spending, including costly vacations. Walker is accused of setting up investment accounts under…
DOJ Charges Another Two Ex-Rabobank Traders Over Libor Manipulation
The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted another two ex-Rabobank (RABO) traders over their alleged involvement in a London interbank offered rate manipulation scam. The charges widen the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s probe into the Dutch bank to include U.S. dollar Libor, as well as yen libor. Anthony Allen and…
LPL Financial Fires Texas Branch Manager Over Selling Away Claims, Settles with Senior Investors in Massachusetts for $541,000 Over Faulty Variable Annuity Switches
According to his report on the central registration depository, LPL Financial (LPLA) branch manager James Bashaw was fired last month for allegedly engaging in selling away, which involves taking part in private securities transactions without written disclosure or approval from a brokerage firm, as well as borrowing from a client…
UBS is Fined $3.6M, Plus Must Pay $1.7M in Restitution Over Puerto Rico Closed-End Mutual Fund Sales
UBS Financial Services Incorporated of Puerto Rico (UBS) has reached a settlement with the Commonwealth’s Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions (OCIF) over UBS’s offering and sale of closed-end mutual funds in Puerto Rico. As part of the agreement, UBS will pay a $3.5 million fine, as well as…
Barclays to Pay $20M To Settle Libor Manipulation
Barclays PLC (BARC) has consented to pay $20 million to settle complaints over the manipulation of the London interbank offered rate benchmark. As part of the accord, the bank will cooperate with a group of Eurodollar-futures traders that have filed lawsuits against other banks over Libor manipulation. The deal resolves…
Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and 16 Other Banks Agree to Swaps Contract Modifications to Assist Failed Firms
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA), Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS), Credit Suisse (CS), and fourteen other big banks have agreed to changes that will be made to swaps contracts. The modifications are designed to assist in the unwinding of firms that have failed. Under the plan,…