Articles Tagged with Voya Financial

Broker-Dealer’s RIA Accused of Violating Fiduciary Duty 

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Voya Financial Advisors have arrived at a $22.9M settlement, including $13.9M in restitution and interest to customers that were harmed. Voya Financial Advisors is an independent brokerage firm that is run as both a broker-dealer and a registered investment advisor (RIA). 

As a brokerage firm, Voya Financial Advisors charges commissions.  As an RIA, it charges fees. The regulator contends that conflicts at Voya’s registered investment advisor arm caused the firm to violate and breach its fiduciary obligation to advisory clients. Voya’s RIA oversees nearly $16B in assets for customers. 

If you are an investor who suffered financial losses while working with former Voya Financial Advisors (VOYA) broker James T. Flynn, please contact Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas, LLP (SSEK Law Firm) today. 

Our broker fraud lawyers are investigating claims brought by the former clients of Mr. Flynn while he was a registered broker with Voya Financial from 2013 to 2017 and previous to that while he worked with other financial firms. Voya fired him in 2017. 

With 18 years of experience in the industry, Flynn, who was barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in 2018 after he failed to respond to the self-regulatory organization (SRO)’s request for more information in a probe involving him, has forty disclosures on his BrokerCheck record

Voya Accused of Not Disclosing Revenue Received for Mutual Fund Sales
The US Securities and Exchange Commission said that Voya Financial Advisors (VOYA) would pay approximately $3.1M to regulators and investors for not telling customers about revenue the firm was paid related to a mutual fund program that didn’t bill transaction fees. Voya’s clearing broker-dealer paid the firm a percentage of the money made from the mutual fund sales. This was information that should have been shared with investors.

Also, since 2014, Voya and the third-party brokerage firm were involved in a separate agreement under which Voya provided certain administrative services in return for a percentage of service fees involving certain mutual funds. The regulator said that these payments were a conflict because they gave Voya incentive to preference these funds over other investments, which could have impacted what the firm recommended to advisory clients. As part of the settlement, Voya will pay about $2.6M of disgorgement, approximately $175K of interest, and a $300K penalty. The firm is not, however, denying or admitting to the SEC’s findings.

Fired Waddell & Reed Broker is Barred from the Securities Industry
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has barred an ex-Waddell & Reed Inc. broker from the industry. Paul D. Stanley was fired from the firm last year for allegedly violating its policies regarding supervision, compensation, and conduct.

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Voya Financial Inc. (VOYA) is the defendant in a 401(k) lawsuit alleging excessive fees. According to a Nestle 401(k) Savings Plan participant, Voya and managed-account provider Financial Engines came up with an arrangement that allowed Voya to collect excessive fees for service related to investment advice, but without disclosing that this was part of their deal. In Patrico v. Voya Financial, Inc. et al., the plaintiff is claiming breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA.
 
The proposed class action lawsuit contends that Voya offered participants an advice program via the Voya Retirement Advisers but subcontracted to have Financial Engines give      the advice.  The plaintiff contends that even though Voya didn’t provide “material services” related to the advice that participants were given through the program, the company collected a fee to which it purportedly had no right. Voya allegedly keeps a “substantial” part of the fee, while giving some of the fee to Financial Engines.
 
Voya denies any wrongdoing. 
 

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The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined six independent brokerage firms for not giving clients the proper discounts on big sales of business development companies and real estate investment trusts. According to InvestmentNews, the self-regulatory organization has been scrutinizing whether financial firms are giving the appropriate discounts, also known as breakpoint discounts to clients.

When the sale of certain nontraded real estate investment trusts is anywhere from over $500K up to $1 million, a discount is usually available. This means that the REIT’s price, which is typically at $10/share with the broker getting a 70 cent commission, can go down to $9.90/share and a commission of 60 cents.

FINRA said that J.P. Turner, Voya Financial Inc. (VOYA), Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc., Investacorp., National Planning Corp., and Cetera Investment Services did not identify and put into effect volume discounts for certain eligible purchase of BDCs and non-traded REITs. Because of this, said the SRO, customers paid sales charges that were too high. Now, all six firms will have to pay restitution to the clients that were affected.

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