Investor Lawyers Blog

Appeals Court Upholds $839M MBS Fraud Judgment Against Royal Bank of Scotland Group & Nomura

Published on: September 28, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

In a unanimous ruling, a U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit panel has turned down an appeal by Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS) and Nomura Holdings Inc. (NMR) to overturn an order mandating that they pay $839M for the false statements, including misrepresentations, that they are accused of making while selling mortgage-backed securities to Freddie Mac (FMCC) and Fannie Mae (FNMA). The MBS fraud award was issued against the two banks in the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s securities lawsuit. FHFA has been the conservator for Fannie and Freddie ever since the US government took them over after the housing market failed in 2008.

Nomura sponsored $2B of securities that were sold to the mortgage companies. RBS was the underwriter on four of the deals. In a filing submitted to US securities regulators last month, RBS said it is looking to be indemnified by Nomura for the losses.

Ex-Investment Manager Gets 12-Years in $96M Ponzi Scam

Published on: September 27, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Brian R. Callahan, a former investment fund manager, has been ordered to serve 12 years in prison and three years of supervised release for his role in a $96M Ponzi scam. He also must pay $67.6M in restitution. Callahan pleaded guilty to wire fraud and securities fraud in 2014.

Between 12/2006 and 2/2012, Callahan raised over $118M from at least 40 investors related to four investment funds he oversaw. He told investors that their money would be placed in different securities, such as hedge funds and mutual funds. What happened instead was that the former investment manager misappropriated about $96M in a Ponzi scam.

Callahan is accused of diverting millions of dollars toward an unprofitable beachfront residence and resort development named Panoramic View that he co-owned with his brother-in-law, Adam Manson. The latter is a co-defendant in the Ponzi fraud.

Morgan Stanley to Pay $13M Over Improper Supervision of Unit Investment Trust Sales

Published on: September 25, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

FINRA is ordering Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (MS) to pay about $9.8M in restitution to and a $3.25M fine for purportedly not properly supervising hundreds of financial representatives who sold short-term trades of UITs. The firm settled without denying or admitting to the regulator’s charges.

According to the self-regulatory organization, from 2/2012 through 6/2015, the brokerage firm’s representatives effected short-term UIT rollovers, including a number of them more than 100 days prior to maturity, in customer accounts. FINRA said that the firm did not properly supervise these reps, when they engaged in the UIT sales, nor did it properly train them regarding the investments. It also purportedly failed to give supervisors adequate guidance about how to study transactions for signs of unsuitable short-term trading. Morgan Stanley is accused of failing to put into effect a system “adequate” enough to identify short-term UIT rollovers and of not providing supervisory assessment for UIT rollovers before execution.

UITs
Unit investment trusts are investment companies that offer units in a securities of a portfolio. They are subject to termination on a certain maturity date, usually after 15 months or 24 months. They typically come with certain fees, including a creation fee and a deferred sales charge. According to FINRA, when a new UIT compels a customer to be pay higher sales charges over time, this could be a red flag indicating suitability issues.

Hilliard Lyons Ordered to Pay $569K For Allegedly Overconcentrating Accounts in Breitburn Energy Partners

Published on: September 25, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration panel has ruled that Hilliard Lyons LLC must pay claimants Troy and Elizabeth Benitone $569K. Hilliard Lyons, the wealth investment firm is accused of overconcentrating the Benitones’ accounts in Breitburn Energy Partners stock.

The claimants, in their oil and gas fraud case, alleged breach of fiduciary duty, negligent misrepresentation and omission, common law fraud, breach of contract, and negligence supervision. The Benitones contend that Hilliard Lyons and its registered representative sold all of the claimants’ blue chip stocks, investing the money that was in their joint account and in Troy’s IRA in Breitburn. They lost $350K, with statutory damages at 10% on the purchase cost at $441K, from being over-concentrated in Breitburn.

The Benitones believe that it was the lack of diversification in their investments that put them at high risk of loss, especially as they had conservative investment goals and could not handle much risk at all. Also, Hilliard Lyons was the underwriter for the Breitburn Energy Partners stock.

SEC Hacking Raises Concerns That Rogue Traders Might Access Filings in EDGAR Before They Are Public

Published on: September 22, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

According to The Wall Street Journal, news that the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s electronic filing system was hacked is raising concerns of what rogue traders may do if they gained market-moving information before the news went public. This week, the SEC disclosed that that its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval System (EDGAR), which stores public company filings, was hacked last year.

While the breach was noticed in 2016, regulators were not made aware that illicit trading could become a repercussion until last month. The majority of the commissioners reportedly didn’t know the hack had occurred until “recent days.” It wasn’t until SEC Chairman Jay Clayton launched a review of the agency’s “cybersecurity vulnerabilities” this Spring that the extent of the hack became clear.

The WSJ reports that according to market veterans, there are several ways in which intruders could trade using the nonpublic information available through Edgar. Companies usually submit earnings filings in advance of them become public knowledge and it is during this time, before market release, when a rogue trader could strike. Another potential target for hackers might be the 8-K form, used by companies to disclose big events, including acquisitions, not yet disclosed medical trials, and other potentially market moving information. 13-D filings submitted by investors with a greater than 5% position in a company—this is information that could generate investor interest—could also be a target.

Former UBS Precious Metals Trader is Accused of Market Rigging

Published on: September 20, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

In the US, federal prosecutors have filed a complaint against ex-UBS (UBS) trader Andre Flotron, charging him with commodities fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy, and spoofing. The latter is what they claim that he engaged in to rig the precious metal futures market. Spoofing involves issuing bids or offers that are deceptive to manipulate a market.

According to the criminal complaint, Flotron and co-conspirators engaged in the alleged spoofing scam from at least 7/2008 through at least 11/2013. He would submit a small sell order or buy order for a certain futures contract, which would be close in price to the current market price. Flotron would then put in an order at least 10 times bigger on the market’s opposite side before cancelling the bigger order seconds after at least part of the order he made originally was put through.

Flotron also is accused of teaching a young trader how to spoof. The trader, who spoofed on numerous occasions, struck a nonprosecution deal in which he agreed to share information about the alleged spoofing.

Securities Fraud Cases: State Street to Pay Over $35M Over Alleged Secret Markup Charges and Material Omissions, Braskem to pay Investors $10M To Settle Lawsuit in Petrobas Scandal, & Three Ex-Registered Reps Resolve Market Rigging Case over Attempted Nasdaq Listing

Published on: September 20, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

State Street Resolves SEC Fraud Charges for $35M
To settle charges brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, State Street (STT) will pay over $35M to resolve charges accusing the financial firm of overcharging transition management customers in secret, purportedly making $20M in improper revenue in the process, and leaving out material information related to GovEx, the trading platform it uses for US Treasury securities. The charges against State Street were brought in two separate orders.

In the first SEC order, the firm is accused of using false trading statements, post-trade reports, and pre-trade estimates so it could misrepresent the compensation it received on different transactions. After one customer noticed certain concealed markups, State Street’s employees claimed that these were “inadvertent commissions.”

In the second order, the SEC said that the firm did not notify GovEx subscribers that although the trading platform had been touted as “fair and transparent,” one subscriber was given a “Last Look” option that briefly allowed for the opportunity to turn down matches to quotes that were submitted. The Last Look trading functionality was used by that subscriber to turn down 57 matches, each face valued at $1M. Counterparties were not notified by State Street that Last Look had rejected their orders.

Brothers Plead Guilty in $40M Oregon Ponzi Scam That Bilked 400 Investors

Published on: September 18, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

In US district court in Oregon, siblings Gary Holcomb and Michael Holcomb pleaded guilty to money laundering and felony conspiracy in a $40M Ponzi fraud that bilked approximately 40 investors. The brothers were formerly executives at financing company Berjac. The insurance business went bankrupt in 2012.

Berjac was supposed to issue loans to small businesses so they could pay their insurance premiums. The loans were considered low risk, with Berjac getting to keep an interest in the part of the insurance premium that went unused should a business default on a loan.

Investors were told they’d get quick returns by investing in Berjac, and as borrowers repaid the loans with interest. The financing company made it appear as if that were the case by instead paying investors with funds given to them by other investors in Ponzi-like fashion. Meantime, the Holcombs would issue quarterly statements that contained false information to investors, even as the brothers used the money to pay down their debt, purchase a vacation home, and get involved in speculative real estate projects. When Berjac failed, investors lost their principal investments.

Alleged $283M Institutional Investor Fraud Involving Biotech Companies Leads to Criminal Indictments

Published on: September 18, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A federal grand jury has indicted two men for their alleged involvement in a nearly $230M institutional investor fraud scam involving biotech companies. G. Steven Burrill, the owner and CEO of Burrill & Company, and Marc Howard Berger are the two defendants named in the criminal indictment. Burrill is charged with 26 counts of wire fraud, one count of investment adviser fraud, and one count of tax evasion. Berger is charged with multiple accounts of aiding in preparing fraudulent tax returns.

According to the criminal indictment, Burrill sent letters that were false and misleading to persuade limited partners to give capital to the fund. He also allegedly moved millions of dollars in unnecessary management fees to companies under his control, as well as submitted the allegedly fraudulent tax returns.

It was in March of last year that Burrill settled civil charges brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission accusing him of taking funds from the Burrill Life Sciences Capital Fund III in order to maintain his expensive lifestyle and keep some of his other businesses in operation. The regulator claimed that Burrill took from the Fund III and pretended that these were management fees he was issuing to himself in advance. He then allegedly went on to spend the money on vacations, jewelry, private planes, and other expenses.

Insider Trading: Ex-Amazon Financial Analyst Allegedly Tipped Former Fraternity Brother, Man Accused of Giving Merger Info to Brother, Ex-Pricewaterhouse Coopers Auditor is Subject of Securities Case, and Deutsche Börse to Pay $12.5M in Fines

Published on: September 16, 2017 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Ex-Amazon Employee and Former College Schoolmate Accused of Insider Trading
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has brought civil insider trading charges against Brett Kennedy and Maziar Rezakhani. Kennedy, an ex- Amazon financial analyst, is accused of leaking confidential information to Rezakhani, who was a former fraternity brother, prior to a company earnings announcement for Amazon being disclosed to the public. Kennedy is also facing criminal charges.

According to the regulator, Kennedy shared the 2015 first quarter earnings information without authorization while employed at Amazon. Rezakhani then allegedly illegally traded on the information in advance of the information’s release to the public and he made over $116K in illicit profits.

Also, on two online communications platforms involving trading, Rezakhani accurately predicted Amazon’s first quarter performance. He is accused of paying Kennedy $10K for the tip and sharing the money with Sam Sadeghi, who gave him trading advice. Sadeghi also faces civil charges.