CFTC, FINRA, and SEC Fight Investor Fraud Together

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has launched CFTC SmartCheck. The site gives consumers information about financial fraud. It links to The Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR product registration database and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s BrokerCheck system, as well as to the National Futures Association. For the first time the three regulators are joining forces to combat investor fraud. The site makes checking the backgrounds of brokers and investment advisers more localized.

This year, the CFTC spent around $4.2 million in consumer protection and has an even bigger budget for next year. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFTC was given authority to establish a consumer protection fund that covers whistleblower office and education initiatives.

Last month, the North American Securities Administrators Association announced that in 2013 state securities regulators increased the number of formal enforcement actions they initiated against licensed broker-dealer sales representatives, as well as firms and individuals that didn’t have a license. The states reported 810 actions against unlicensed firms or individuals, which is 34% more than the year before. There was an 89% rise in actions against (357) licensed broker-dealer agents between the same time period.

Also, between ’12 and ’13:

• Enforcement actions against licensed investment adviser representatives went up 11% to 176 from 158.

• The number of enforcement actions against investment adviser firms went down 4% from 174 to 181.

While efforts by regulators to combat fraud is important, if you are an investor that has sustained losses from securities fraud committed by a registered or unregistered financial firm or representative, your best chances of recovering your funds is to work with an experience securities lawyer.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission teams up with SEC and Finra to combat investor fraud, Investment News, November 19, 2014

CFTC SmartCheck

EDGAR

NASAA Enforcement Report (PDF)

FINRA BrokerCheck

National Futures Association

More Blog Posts:
Judge Orders Texas-Based Life Partners Holdings Inc., Two Executives to Pay $46.9M Over Securities Filings, Stockbroker Fraud Blog, December 3, 2014

Madoff Ponzi Scam Victims Recover Over $10 Billion, Institutional Investor Fraud Blog, December 5, 2014

SEC Files Charges Against Former Broker-Dealer Owner Over Fraudulent Stock Sales, Stockbroker Fraud Blog, December 2, 2014