Questar Capital Corp. has fired Jason Kavanaugh, its senior vice president of mergers and acquisitions, because he failed to disclose outside business activities and private securities transactions. Kavanaugh recently came under fire when it was discovered that he paid E-M Management Co. LLC $57,000 for fake, unregistered securities. Kavanaugh also…
An SSE Exclusive: Provided below is a link to a comprehensive expose explaining how Wall Street firms and banks may have convinced investors it was safe to place over $300 billion into “auction rate securities” by promising that these were safe and liquid investments. During the week of February 11,…
Former Credit Suisse Securities USA LLC investment banker Hafiz Naseem says he will appeal his conviction for insider trading charges, which include 1 count of conspiracy and 28 counts of securities fraud involving stolen nonpublic data allegedly used for insider trading that generated at least $7.5 million. He faces a…
The Securities and Exchange Commission is conducting three dozen open investigations into misconduct in the subprime mortgage industry. The probe is taking a look at possible misconduct involving: • The origination process • Insider trading • Securitization and sales of mortgage-backed securities According to SEC Division of Enforcement Associate Director…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) have announced a new group initiative to protect senior investors from becoming the victims of investment scams. SEC, NASAA, and FINRA will work with investment advisers and broker-dealer companies to…
The accounting firm of Doeren Mayhew & Company was named in a lawsuit filed in Oakland County, Michigan, in connection with a highly publicized multi-million dollar alleged ponzi scheme using partnerships, many purported to earn revenues from telephone usage in Las Vegas hotels. The central figure reported as the mastermind…
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court ruled unanimously today that individual participants in 401(k) retirement plans can sue to recover their loses under the federal pension protection law. Over 50 million workers in the U.S. have a total of $2.7 trillion invested into 401(k) retirement plans which are governed by the…
Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America and California’s insurance department have reached a settlement agreement over allegations that Allianz engaged in inappropriate fixed annuity sales. Allianz Life will pay $10 million: $3.3 million to the California insurance department, $3 million to investments in the California Organized Investment Network, and…
This week, Goldman Sachs told a number of investors that they could not withdraw money from their auction-rate securities investments. This move by Goldman came as a shock to investors-but the firm was not alone. Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, and other banks have also found themselves notifying their investors that…
Goldman Sachs & Co. says it will settle a class action suit filed by the University of California (UC) over the purchase of Enron Corp. securities for $11.5 million. The University of California Board of Regents has approved the terms of the settlement. Goldman allegedly marketed Enron 7% exchangeable notes…