Articles Posted in Securities Fraud

Morgan Stanley Broker Thomas Bonds Has Three Investor Claims That Resulted in Settlements 

Our broker misconduct attorneys are investigating claims of losses involving current and former customers of Morgan Stanley broker Thomas Craig Bonds. According to his BrokerCheck record, the Kirkland, WA financial advisor has one pending customer dispute. In the investor’s FINRA arbitration claim, the claimant seeks $5M in damages and alleges unsuitability related to how the broker managed their account from April 2015 to September 2021. 

Unsuitability generally alleges that actions were taken by the financial advisor that were not a suitable fit for the investor given several factors, including: 

Ex-NPB Financial Group Advisor Has Six Disputes On BrokerCheck Record

If you suffered losses while working with former NPB Financial Group registered representative Neal Edwin Nakagiri, you might have grounds for a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration claim to pursue damages from the firm. Nakagiri, who has worked for four decades in the industry, has been named in at least six customer complaints. 

According to his LinkedIn, Nakagiri is President and managing owner of NPB Financial Group. He was also a registered broker and investment advisor with the firm from 2006 until March 2022. 

Ex-Centaurus Financial Broker May Have Unsuitably Sold Risky Junk Bonds to Elderly Investors 

Our GWG Holdings L Bond lawyers are looking into claims of L Bond losses by former customers of Mark John Williams, an ex-Centaurus Financial broker. Williams is currently a Kingswood Capital Partners stockbroker and Financial Gravity Family Office Services investment advisor out of Carmel By The Sea, California. 

Several of his former customers, including elderly investors and retirees, have complained that he allegedly recommended and sold them GWG L Bonds. These high-yield bonds were too risky, illiquid, and speculative for these investors from the beginning. These contentions appear to be from when he was registered with Centaurus Financial and after with Forta Financial Group. 

Los Angeles-Based Financial Advisor Allegedly Targeted Customers of Iranian Heritage

In an earlier GWG L Bond blog post, our securities attorneys reported we were looking into whether customers of Emerson Equity broker Tony Barouti had suffered losses in these high-yield bonds. In March 2022, investors filed two investor claims seeking $1.37M in damages.

Brokerage firm Emerson Equity is the managing broker-dealer for the GWG issuer of $1.6B of L bonds, backed by life settlements. On April 20, 2022, GWG Holdings, Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The move came just two months after the Texas-based alternative asset firm defaulted on $13.6M in bond payments and interest it owed L Bond investors. 

Berthel Fisher & Co Accused of Supervisory and Compliance Issues Involving a Customer 

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced that Berthel Fisher & Co. had been ordered to pay a $100K fine. This fine concerns shortcomings related to compliance involving options trades in a customer’s account. The firm is not denying or admitting to the self-regulatory organization’s (SRO) findings. 

According to FINRA, in August 2015, while looking over a customer’s request for approval to trade options in his account, Berthel Fisher & Co neglected to conduct due diligence. The broker-dealer failed to ensure that this type of transaction was suitable based on the client’s investment experience. 

Cetera and Other Broker-Dealers May Have Unsuitably Sold St. George’s Ltd Products to Customers

Our broker misconduct lawyers are looking into claims of losses by investors who were marketed and sold products from St. George’s, Ltd. The Bermuda-based life insurance company has been in liquidation proceedings since 2019. Its owner, Ramesh Dusoroth, is accused of defrauding investors of millions of dollars. 

The joint provisional liquidators in this endeavor involving St. George’s Ltd. are John Johnston and Rachel Frisby of Deloitte, Ltd. Both of them are also involved in the liquidation proceedings of Northstar Financial Services (Bermuda), another offshore company that has been the cause of investment losses for many foreign nationals. Northstar (Bermuda) owner Greg Lindberg is now in prison, and he also likely misappropriated investors’ money. 

Ex-IFS Securities Broker Recommended Promissory Note to Elderly Investors

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has barred ex-IFS Securities registered representative Steven Douglas Schisler beginning January 31, 2022. Schisler, who works out of the Greater Sacramento, California area, has been a financial planner and investment advisor for over 20 years. He is also the principal of Synergy Wealth Management.

The industry bar comes in the wake of allegations that Schisler unsuitably recommended a promissory note to an older married couple. 

Fired California Financial Advisor Allegedly Bilked Pro Athletes of Millions 

Darryl Matthew Cohen, a former top-producing Morgan Stanley Smith Barney registered representative of Southern California, faces a FINRA bar beginning February 16, 2022. This bar will come into effect unless he cooperates in the self-regulatory organization’s (SRO’s) probe into allegations that he improperly used customers’ money. A number of the clients who have stepped forward to complain are current and ex-professional athletes. 

Morgan Stanley fired Darryl Cohen in March 2021 over allegedly engaging in undisclosed outside business activities and using an unapproved platform to communicate with clients inappropriately. He has nine customer disputes listed on BrokerCheck, with four of them still pending in which the damages sought total millions of dollars. 

Atlanta Financial Advisor Accused of Using an Unsuitable Options Investment Strategy

Michael John Wagner, a longtime Morgan Stanley broker, is currently under scrutiny in the wake of recent customer disputes in which the claimants are requesting over $20M in damages. 

Based out of Atlanta, Georgia, Wagner has worked in the industry for 20 years. He has been a Morgan Stanley broker since 2012. Before that, he was a Merrill Lynch stockbroker and investment advisor.

Corpus Christi Financial Advisor is Accused of Negligence, Misrepresentations

Our Texas broker misconduct lawyers are looking into claims of losses by customers of Mark Alan Kemp, who is currently a McNally Financial Services registered representative. Mark Kemp, who has been in the industry for 30 years, has been named in nearly a dozen customer disputes, three of which are still pending.

If you are one of these investors, please contact us at Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas (SSEK Law Firm at investorlawyers.com) today. We can determine whether you have grounds for a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration claim to pursue damages.

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