Five school districts in Wisconsin are suing Stifel Nicolaus & Co., Inc. and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) for losses incurred after the bank and brokerage firm sold the districts “Credit Default Swaps,” (also called “CDS” or complex credit derivatives) worth $200 million resulting in some $150 million in losses.…
A recent New York Times article about the current US financial crisis refers to an April 28, 2004 meeting involving members of the Securities and Exchange Commission. During the meeting, the SEC members considered an urgent request made by large investment banks for an exemption from an old regulation limiting…
A source in investment banking who is choosing to remain anonymous says that the futures of nearly 7,000 financial advisors and registered representatives responsible for generating some $1.3 billion in fees and commissions in 2007 will be decided by American International Group Inc’s large scale asset sale. Details of the…
This week, the securities fraud law firm of Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LTD LLP announced that it is investigating claims involving “structured products” that were created by Lehman Brothers. Structured products are also called “structured notes.” These financial instruments combine derivatives with equities and/or fixed incomes to create a…
The FBI is currently investigating Don Weir, a broker and former vice president of investment firm St. Louis-based HFI Securities Inc. The federal probe comes after silver and gold coins worth millions of dollars were found in the basement of Weir’s former home. The authorities confiscated the bouillon after Weir’s…
A former LPL Financial and Ameriprise representative has been charged with 14 counts of theft and one count of fraud-all charged as felony crimes-after he allegedly stole $5 million from over 20 people he was acquainted with through Little League and church. James J. Buchanan was indicted last May at…
According to the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, the New Jersey Division of Investment went beyond its authority with its rules allowing the division director to hire external managers to oversee pension fund investments. The panel however, did uphold the rules allowing the division to invest in private equity…
A hedge fund manager has settled Securities and Exchange Commission charges that he misrepresented Pinnacle West, LLC and Sunquest Development, LLC as sound investments and, as a result, defrauded investors of almost $20 million. Mark Joseph Peterson Boucher will pay a $100,000 civil fine and will be barred from giving…
The US District Court for the Western District of Michigan says that under Oklahoma and Michigan laws, viatical settlements are securities. The court, however, did not rule on whether the instruments are securities under Texas law. Investors in a number of states had sued Trade Partners Inc. and its affiliate…
Rosenthal Collins Group LLC has reached an agreement to settle Commodity Futures Trading Commission charges that it neglected to properly supervise employees and enforce compliance procedures. The futures commission merchant says it will pay $310,000 to settle the charges for violations that the CFTC says took place for over two…