Bond Funds

What Are The Risks of High-Yield “Junk” Bonds?

Published on: August 31, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Denver Investors May Be Facing Losses from High Yield Bonds

As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to increase in parts of the US, high-yield junk bonds have been underperforming.

Not only that, but according to The Wall Street Journal, in early July the growing concern that there may be a bigger wave of pandemic cases coming caused junk bond yields to reach their highest levels in weeks as the high-risk debt “underperformed” in certain credit markets.

Nine Energy Service Investors May Have Grounds for Bond Fraud Claims to Recover Losses

Published on: June 16, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Nine Energy Service Bonds Expected to Deteriorate Further

Nine Energy Service, Inc. (NINE) recently announced that the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) found that the oilfield services company was once more in compliance with the stock exchange’s continued listing standard.

The news comes less than two months after the NYSE notified the Houston-based company of its noncompliance with this standard after its common stock’s share price dropped to under $1/share over 30 trading days in a row. The $1/share price is the minimum closing price per share allowed for a stock to stay on the NYSE.

Frontier Communications Bonds Purchased From FMSBonds May Have Grounds for FINRA Arbitration Claim

Published on: April 23, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

FMSBonds May Not Have Apprised Frontier Communications Investors Of The Risks

If you purchased Frontier Communications bonds from FMSBonds, also known as First Miami Securities, or any other bonds that have turned out riskier than what was represented to you, please contact our broker fraud lawyers at Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas (SSEK Law Firm) today.

Our investor law firm has been speaking to investors with complaints against the Florida-based municipal bond firm to help them determine whether they have grounds for a securities arbitration claims to recover their losses.

Puerto Rico Retiree Plan Accuses UBS and Others of Bond Price Rigging

Published on: April 29, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The Puerto Rico Government Employees and Judiciary Retirement Systems Administration, a pension plan for retirees of the U.S. territory’s government, has filed a proposed securities class action in federal court against Bank of America (BAC), Goldman Sachs (GS), Citigroup (C), Barclays Capital, Inc. (BARC), BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Bank of America Securities, Credit Suisse Securities, FTN Financial Securities, Deutsche Bank Securities, JP Morgan Securities, Morgan Stanley (MS), Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, and UBS Securities. The retirement fund is accusing the defendants of rigging bond prices to keep the prices up on Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae bonds.

Freddie and Fannie, both U.S. government-sponsored entities (GSEs), offer bonds to raise money for loans. According to the Puerto Rico pension plan’s bond fraud case, the trading desks of the various banks worked together to artificially raise the prices of the GSE bonds when the market took a hit after the 2008 financial crisis and Fannie and Freddie started reducing the number of bonds issued for sale. This decrease led to a loss in profits for those underwriting and trading in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bonds. The plaintiff contends that instead of the banks opting to lower the difference between their purchasing and selling prices and competing for clients, they worked together to fix the bond prices so they could “maximize” their profits at the expense of customers.

The Puerto Rico retirement plan’s complaint comes weeks after another proposed class action was brought by two other pension funds also accusing banks of rigging the price of GSE bonds. The pension fund plaintiffs in that fraud case are the Trust and Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 19 Pension Fund and the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Employees’ Defined Benefit Retirement Plan. The defendants are Bank of America NA, Barclays Capital, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Citigroup Global Markets, Inc., BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Deutsche Bank Securities, JPMorgan Securities, HSBS Bank Plc, HSBC Securities, JP Morgan Chase Bank, TD Securities, Nomura Securities International Inc., and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith.

Ex-UBS Official Recounts How the Bank Got Investors to Take on More Puerto Rico Debt

Published on: May 2, 2018 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A former UBS (UBS) banking official is claiming that Wall Street banks like his previous employer played a key role in the Puerto Rico economic crisis that has left the U.S. territory more than $70 billion in debt and mired in bankruptcy-like proceedings. The ex-UBS official, Carlos Capacete, was interviewed as part of a joint NPR and FRONTLINE probe. Capacete worked for UBS Puerto Rico (UBS-PR) for over a quarter of a century and was the head of the biggest UBS branch on the island in Hato Rey. At one point, Capacete oversaw $3 billion in client assets. Capacete left UBS in 2014 shortly after the crash in Puerto Rico bonds.

Prior to the market crash, Puerto Rico bonds and closed-end bond funds were highly profitable sales products for UBS and other banks on the island. While trying to prevent a government shutdown a number of years back, the U.S. territory started to borrow to pay for yearly government costs. This added $48 billion of debt in 14 years, reports PBS and FRONTLINE.

The Puerto Rico Debt Crisis Only Increased as Banks Made More Money

$85M Ponzi Scam Allegedly Defrauded at Least 150 Investors

Published on: May 1, 2018 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has filed fraud charges in an alleged $85M Ponzi scam that may have defrauded at least 150 investors. The defendants in the civil case are Arthur Lamar Adams and his Madison Timber Properties, LLC. Prosecutors have brought a parallel criminal case against Adams charging him with two counts of wire fraud. They contend that Adams’ fraud ran from 2011 through last month and his Ponzi scam involved fraudulently securing over $100M from over 250 investors in at least 14 states.

Adams Allegedly Provided False Information to Investors in the Ponzi scam involving his business Madison Timber Properties.

According to the regulator’s complaint, Adams lied when he told investors that their funds would go toward obtaining and harvesting timber from different land owners. He also promised 12-15% yearly returns. In truth, contends the SEC, Adam’s company did not have harvesting rights and Adams allegedly forged documents, deeds, and cutting agreements. The regulator is accusing Adams and Madison Timber Properties of violating the federal securities laws’ antifraud provisions, making untrue statements and omissions, and committing fraud through their business actions. A court has approved the regulator’s request for an asset freeze

SEC Files Fraud Charges in Native American Tribal Bonds Scam

Published on: May 13, 2016 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is charging John Galanis, his son Jason Galanis, and five other people with fraud involving a multimillion-dollar tribal bonds scam. The SEC claims that Jason ran the scheme to obtain a “source of discretionary liquidity.”

He and his father allegedly persuaded a Native American tribal corporation affiliated with the Wakpamni District of the Oglala Sioux Nation to put out limited recourse bonds that the two of them had structured. Jason then acquired two investment advisory firms and appointed officers to coordinate the purchase of $32 million in bonds. He used client money to purchase the bonds.

Investors were told that the bond proceeds would be invested in annuities to make enough money to pay back bondholders and to benefit the tribal corporation. Instead, the money went to a bank account owned by a company that Jason and his associates controlled. The funds were allegedly misappropriated to make luxury purchases and to pay lawyers representing Jason and his dad in a criminal case involving unrelated stock fraud charges.

The SEC wants disgorgement, interest, penalties, and permanent injunctions. Also named in the complaint are Devon Archer, Bevan Cooney, Hugh Dukerley, Gary Hirst, and Michelle Morton. They face charges of violating federal securities laws’ antifraud provisions and other rules.

SEC Cases: Ex-AIG Broker-Dealers to Pay $9.5M For Purportedly Directing Investors Toward Pricier Mutual Funds, California Water District Resolves Bond Offering Charges for $125M, & Businessman is Accused of Stealing Investor Money

Published on: March 14, 2016 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Former AIG Affiliate Brokerage Firms to Pay $7.5M Fine, $2M Restitution Over High-Priced Mutual Funds
Royal Alliance Associates, FSC Securities Corp., and SagePoint Financial have agreed to pay over $9.5M to resolve Securities and Exchange Commission charges accusing them of guiding clients toward expensive mutual fund share classes so that the firms could garner additional fees. The brokerage firms were formerly under the AIG Advisor Group umbrella.

According to the regulator, the firms put clients in share classes that charged 12b-1 fees for distribution and marketing even though they were eligible to purchase shares that didn’t come with these added fees.

Because of the placement in the costlier fund classes, the firms collected an additional $2M in fees and did not disclose their conflict of interest in choosing the share classes that would make them more money.

The AIG affiliates are accused of not monitoring advisory accounts quarterly to make sure that churning didn’t take place. The SEC order is claiming breach of fiduciary duty and numerous compliance failures.

California Businessman Allegedly Stole Investor Money, Covered Up Fraud
Daniel R. Nase is accused of stealing investor assets and then trying to conceal the theft once the SEC discovered his scam. The regulator claims that the California businessman raised funds from investors via an unregistered offing of common stock in his Bic Real Estate Development Corp. He then used the funds to cover his own bills.

The Commission said that Nase, who was not registered with any state regulator or the SEC to sell investments, told investors that his company would invest in promissory notes and real estate. Instead, he improperly placed those under his name, his wife’s name, of the name of their family trust. He allegedly tried to hide his fraud by investing the assets that he stole back into BIC to make it look like he was raising his equity stake in the company.

California Water District Accused of Misleading Investors in $77M Bond Offering
The SEC is charging Westlands Water District with misleading investors about its financial state while issuing a $77M bond offering. The agricultural water district is the largest one in the state of California.

According to the SEC, Westland, in prior bond offerings, consented to keep a 1.25 debt service coverage ratio but discovered in 2010 that a lower water supply and drought conditions would keep it from making enough money to keep up that ratio, which measures an issuer’s ability to make future bond payments. To meet the ratio without upping customer rates, Westlands reclassified the funds.
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SEC Chairman Mary Jo White Wants Reforms Made to Bond Market

Published on: June 23, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White wants significant reforms made to the bond market. Speaking at the Economic Club of New York, White spoke about how trading in these fixed income markets are “highly decentralized.”

She expressed concern that technology was being used in these markets to make this decentralized approach to trading more beneficial for market intermediaries.

According to Reuters, White’s speech is a sign that the SEC is at last making an effort to implement recommendations it made in 2012 about the $3.7 million municipal securities market. The regulator is launching an initiative that would mandate that alternative trading systems and other electronic dealer networks make available to the public their best prices for municipal bonds and corporate bonds. This should give smaller retail investors, and not just certain select parties, pre-trading price data.

Financial Firms In The Spotlight: Raymond James Gives RIA’s Access to Alternative Investments, Citigroup’s $730M Bondholder Settlement is Approved, JPMorgan Deals with China-Related Hirings Inquiry, & Merrill Lynch’s Future as an Entity is Uncertain

Published on: August 23, 2013 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Affiliated RIAs of Raymond James to Get Access to Firm’s Alternative Investments

The Raymond James Alternative Investment Group will give its affiliated registered investment advisers access to hedge funds, private real estate, managed futures, private equity, and alternative mutual funds beginning next month. The move is part of Raymond James’ (RJF) attempt to strengthen its RIA platform.

Already, it has added more support services for investment advisers in the areas of marketing, practice marketing, and succession planning. The financial firm also brought in four regional directors for recruiting and existing practices while cutting equity ticket charges and waving certain individual retirement account fees.