FINRA has suspended and fined former LPL Financial LLC broker Joffre Salazar from the securities industry for one year. Mr. Salazar consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that he forged the signatures and initials of two customers on forms related to their purchases of fixed annuities. His…
Securities Arbitration Lawyer Blog
David Van Geffen, Formerly with Raymond James, Suspended by FINRA – Lafayette, LA
FINRA has suspended and fined former Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. broker David Van Geffen from the securities industry for 15 business days. Mr. Van Geffen consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that he impersonated a customer on telephone calls to an annuity company. His suspension is…
Primary Capital, LLC Fined $50,000 by FINRA Over EB-5 Business – Miami, FL
FINRA has censured and fined Miami-based brokerage Primary Capital, LLC (“Primary”) over supervisory failures and advertising violations related to its EB-5 business. The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program is overseen by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and was created by Congress in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy…
SW Financial Broker, Joseph Lianzo, Suspended by FINRA for Excessively Trading Customers’ Accounts and Placing Unauthorized Trades
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended stockbroker Joseph Lianzo from the securities industry for eight months. Mr. Lianzo consented to the suspension after FINRA alleged that from March 2016 through November 2019, while associated with Laidlaw & Company (UK) LTD. and SW Financial, Mr. Lianzo excessively traded four…
Did Robinhood Employees Trade GameStop and AMC Before Robinhood’s Public Announcement to Restrict Trading on January 28, 2021?
On September 1, 2021, Robinhood ($Hood) filed its first amendment to its Form S-1 Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The public filing, which amends the registration statement that Robinhood filed in connection with its July 2021 initial public offering (IPO), discloses that the SEC’s Division…
Robinhood’s Amended Registration Statement Discloses That Robinhood Is Facing Numerous Lawsuits, Customer Arbitrations, and Regulatory Investigations
On September 1, 2021, Robinhood ($Hood) filed Amendment No 1 to its Form S-1 Registration Statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Form S-1 is the registration statement that Robinhood filed in connection with its July 2021 initial public offering (IPO). Robinhood’s latest public filing discloses that Robinhood…
Whistleblower Awards Alert: The SEC Awards $2.6 Million to Four Whistleblowers
On August 27, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced whistleblower awards of roughly $2.6 million to five whistleblowers in three separate regulatory enforcement proceedings. In total, over $16 million has been awarded to SEC whistleblowers this month. In the first regulatory enforcement proceeding, a whistleblower was awarded approximately…
Former Worden Capital Management LLC Broker, Donald Fowler, BARRED by FINRA for Churning and Excessively Trading Four Customers’ Accounts
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has barred stockbroker Donald Fowler from the securities industry. Mr. Fowler consented to the suspension after FINRA alleged that from December 2014 through December 2018, while associated with Worden Capital Management LLC, Mr. Fowler churned and excessively traded four customers’ accounts in violation of…
SEC Charges John Woods of Southport Capital With Operating $110 Million Ponzi Scheme By Selling Units of Horizon Private Equity, III, LLC
**Update: September 9, 2022** On September 6, 2022, a group of Oppenheimer customers were awarded over $36 million by a FINRA arbitration panel as compensation for their investment losses in Horizon Private Equity, III, LLC. (“Horizon”). Horizon is an alleged Ponzi scheme operated by John Woods, a broker who was…
Another Win for UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES) Customers, Third Award in 2021
On August 23, 2021, a FINRA Dispute Resolution Services arbitration panel in Baltimore, Maryland, ordered UBS Financial Services, Inc. (“UBS”) to pay $405,000 to customers who invested in UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”). The award included $300,000 in compensatory damages, $30,000 in costs, and $75,000 in attorneys’ fees. The customers…