Investor Lawyers Blog

First Broker Fraud Case Involving GPB Capital Investments Gears Up for Spring FINRA Hearing

Published on: December 12, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

GPB Capital Fraud Victim To Have Case Heard By FINRA

An investor who lost significant sums after she was sold GPB Capital private placements by an Arkadios Capital broker will get her case heard before a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration (FINRA) panel in April 2020.

This will likely be the first broker fraud complaint involving GPB investments to go before the self-regulatory organization’s (SRO’s) arbitrators.

Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas Investigates Claims Involving Lincoln Investment Planning Broker Lester Burroughs

Published on: December 10, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

SSEK Investigate Lincoln Investment Planning Broker, Lester Burroughs

If Lincoln Investment Planning investment advisor and broker, Lester Burroughs, worked with you as an investor and you suffered financial losses that you suspect may be due to fraud or negligence, please contact our broker fraud lawyers at Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas, LLP (SSEK Law Firm) today.

Burroughs, who pleaded guilty to wire fraud in the criminal case against him, is currently at the center of a parallel US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaint accusing him of defrauding retail investors. Now, the regulator is seeking a jury trial in its civil lawsuit against the Lincoln Investment Planning broker, who had been based out of Connecticut.

Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas Investigates Claims Involving Ex-Securities America Broker Ronald Roach

Published on: December 9, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Ex-Securities America Broker Investigated For Ponzi Scam Involvement

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it has permanently barred ex-Securities America broker, Ronald Roach, in the wake of his involvement in a $909M Ponzi fraud.

Ronald Roach pleaded guilty last month to criminal fraud charges and is facing up to 10 years behind bars. According to InvestmentNews, Securities America fired him the day after he entered his plea. The SEC contends that Roach and Joseph Bayliss, a general building and electrical contractor, operated an alternative energy tax credit Ponzi scam associated with the company DC Solar.

Former GPB Capital Holdings Partner Doubles Down on Ponzi Scam Claims

Published on: December 6, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Ex-GPB Capital Partner Accusing Firm Of Running A Ponzi Scam

David Rosenburg, a former GPB business partner, is once more accusing GPB Capital Holdings of committing a “massive securities fraud” when it raised over $1.5B from investors. Rosenberg is a former GPB employee and the ex-CEO of its Prime Automotive Group.

Two years ago, before going to work for GPB, he sold $235M of his stake in the Prime Automotive Group to the alternative asset firm. GPB Capital fired him in September just weeks after Rosenberg sued the company in Massachusetts Superior Court and accused it of operating a major Ponzi scam.

Leveraged Loan Defaults Hit $23B

Published on: December 5, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Leveraged Loan Defaults Hit $23 Billion – The Highest In Two Years

According to Forbes, leveraged loan defaults are now at $23B, which is the highest they’ve reached in two years. Not only that but between October and November of this year, 11 issuers defaulted to the amount of $7.8B. None of this is good news for the market or investors.

Comprised of lending syndicates to speculative companies that have junk grade credit, leveraged loans are high-risk credits that the US Securities and Exchange Commission does not regulate. Now, Forbes is reporting that leveraged loans are defaulting from every area of the economy, with the energy and retail sectors being hit especially hard.

UBS Ordered to Pay Investor Over $150K In Puerto Rico Bonds and Closed-End Bond Fund Case

Published on: December 4, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

UBS Loses Another Puerto Rico Bonds & Closed-End Fund Case

More than six years after thousands of investors lost many millions of dollars from investing in Puerto Rico bonds and closed-end bond funds, UBS Puerto Rico (UBS-PR) is still being held to account for the financial losses faced by many of its clients.

This includes one claimant who was recently awarded over $150,000 in compensation plus interest, other costs, and fees in her Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration case against the firm.

Another GPB Capital Holdings Auditor Resigns

Published on: December 3, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

GPB Capital Auditor Makes Decision To Step Down

Once again, investors will have to wait for the audited financials that GPB Capital Holdings keeps promising them and then delaying, as the alternative asset firm’s latest auditor has suddenly resigned. This means that for the foreseeable future, those who bought the company’s private placement funds will continue not to know exactly what their investments are worth.

This is not the first team of auditors to suspend its work with GPB Capital, which invests mostly in waste management and auto dealerships and is accused of operating a $1.8B Ponzi scam.

Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas Investigates Claims Involving Ex-Commonwealth Financial Network Broker Gerald Eaton

Published on: December 2, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

SSEK Investigating Ex-Commonwealth Financial Network Broker

SSEK Law Firm is meeting with investors who suffered losses while working with former Commonwealth Financial Network broker, Gerald Allan Eaton, or another financial representative from the firm.

Eaton was recently barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in the wake of allegations that he fraudulently took money out of his clients’ accounts. Commonwealth fired him last month, claiming it had found that he’d engaged in “serious misconduct” that involved “fraudulently facilitated distributions” from accounts that were not for clients’ benefit and without letting them know or getting their permission.

Ex-UBS Puerto Rico Broker David Lugo Ordered to Appear in Federal Court

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

SSEK Investigating Investor Claims Against Ex-UBS Puerto Rico Broker

For the last several years, Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas, LLP (“SSEK Law Firm”) has been actively working with investors to recover the massive losses they sustained because brokers and their firms recommended that they invest in Puerto Rico bonds and closed-end bond funds.

SSEK Law Firm continues to investigate such claims, including those involving UBS and its brokers. David Jose Lugo (“Lugo”) is one of these former UBS registered representatives and SSEK Law Firm is very familiar with Lugo.

National Financial Services Gives GPB Investors Deadline to Move Investments To Another Platform

Published on: November 26, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

National Financial Services Customers Have 60 Days To Transfer GPB Investments

Five months after announcing that investors of GPB Capital Holdings private placements would no longer be carrying these alternative investments (AI) on its platform, National Financial Services (NFS) is sending letters to customers notifying them that they have 60 days after January 14, 2020, to transfer their GPB Holdings II securities.

The GPB Holdings II securities must be transferred to another custodian broker or their alternative investment (AI) positions will be registered directly in their name. This is one of the larger GPB private placement funds that, as of June, had reported a 25.4% drop in value. National Financial Services (NFS) is a Fidelity Investments clearing and custody unit.