Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged six people, including ex-Citigroup Global Markets’ investment banker Maher Kara and his brother Michael Kara, with taking part in a multimillion-dollar insider trading investment scam that involved tipping others about upcoming merger deals. The Karas were indicted in a California district court.…
An Illinois federal court has ruled in line with the Seventh Circuit and says it will impose sanctions on a party that tried to get an arbitration award vacated because he only put forth frivolous arguments. The case is Halim v. Great Gatsby’s Auction Gallery, Inc. Cameel A. Halim purchased…
Six people have been convicted for conspiracy to commit securities fraud in a scheme involving the abuse of “squawk boxes.” The defendants convicted include former Citigroup/Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch broker Kenneth Mahaffy, former Lehman Brothers employee David Ghysels Jr., former Merrill broker Timothy O’Connell, former AB Watley Group Inc.…
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is affirming the Securities Exchange Commission’s enforcement action against Southwest Securities broker Scott Gann who is accused of engaging in market timing activities that violated certain funds’ restrictions. The 5th circuit’s decision affirms a lower court’s ruling in favor of the…
The Securities and Exchange Commission is suing Morgan Peabody Inc. owner and chief executive officer Davis Williams for allegedly misappropriating investor funds that were raised in three public offerings. Also named in the complaint were Williams Financial Group, Sherwood, and WFG Holdings. The defendants are accused of violating federal securities…
For over a decade, Wall Street firms gathered assets to charge management fees on ever-growing accounts. There was no need to buy and sell, in fact, ignoring clients’ accounts while gathering more assets was rampant. Yet, a funny thing happened on the way to the bank. The value of many…
Hedge fund investment adviser Hennessee Group, LLC has reached an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over its securities fraud probe into Bayou Group and hedge fund manage Samuel Goldberg. Investors lost some $400 million in the scam. Now, Hennessee Group and principal Charles J Gradante will pay over…
Wachovia Capital Markets LLC and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. will settle allegations by the Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation that the firms misled investors who bought auction rate securities by paying a combined $880.3 million-$717 million for Citigroup and $159 million for Wachovia-to reimburse clients. The OFIR says…
Another securities fraud lawsuit has been filed against UBS International, which is a division of UBS. This latest claim brings forth allegations similar to those filed earlier in the year against UBSI. Both claims revolve around the use of loans to buy securities, such as stocks, and UBS created products.…
Last week, Oregon’s Attorney General sued OppenheimerFunds Inc. for allegedly mismanaging the state’s 529 College Savings Plan when it recommended a bond that took risks that were not in alignment with the Plan’s conservative investment objectives. The 529 College Savings Plan allows investors to avail of tax benefits while they…