Articles Tagged with Unsuitable

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended Triad Advisors LLC broker Mark Just from the securities industry for three months for willfully failing to timely amend his Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4) to disclose two state tax liens, which totaled $37,333.80. Mr. Just was also fined $5,000.

Mr. Just is also the subject of numerous customer complaints concerning allegedly unsuitable investment recommendations that he has made to customers involving alternative investments.  According to his public disclosure report, those alternative investments include real estate securities (possibly REITs), business development companies (BDCs), direct participation programs (DPPs), Limited Partnerships (LPs).

If you have lost money with Mark William Just or Triad Advisors LLC, contact FINRA arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended financial advisor Carl Antaki from the securities industry for three months.  Mr. Antaki consented to the suspension after FINRA alleged that he excessively and unsuitably traded a customer’s account. FINRA also fined Mr. Antaki $5,000 and ordered him to pay $22,865 in restitution to the customer.

The alleged conduct occurred while First Standard Financial Company LLC employed Mr. Antaki in Melville, New York. Since September 2019, Mr. Antaki has been registered with Network 1 Financial Securities Inc. in Syosset, New York.

As discussed more fully below, Mr. Frey has a long history of customer complaints, associations with disreputable firms, and at least one employment termination.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has barred stockbroker Matthew Siliato from the securities industry.  Mr. Siliato was expelled from the brokerage industry for refusing to cooperate with a FINRA investigation.  FINRA’s investigation originated from an investigation into Mr. Siliato’s potentially excessive and unauthorized trading in a customer’s account while he was associated with Wynston Hill Capital, LLC in the Bronx, New York.

Mr. Siliato has a history of regulatory sanctions. In June 2019, FINRA suspended Mr. Siliato for failing to comply with an arbitration award. That suspension was lifted in June 2019 but reimposed in January 2020. In September 2019, FINRA suspended Siliato for failing to comply with a second arbitration award. Mr. Siliato has also been the subject of numerous customer complaints.

If you have suffered financial losses investing with Matthew Siliato or Wynston Hill Capital, LLC, contact  New York securities arbitration law firm Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential review of your account.

Martin Lerner is a stockbroker with David Lerner Associates, Inc. (“David Lerner Associates”) in Boca Raton, Florida, with a history of customer complaints.

Martin Lerner has been the subject of six customer complaints, which include one pending dispute and five resolved disputes that ended with monetary compensation being paid to a customer. The pending dispute is a securities arbitration claim filed by a customer against Martin Lerner and David Lerner Associates concerning energy-sector securities. The customer alleged that the recommendations to invest in Energy 12 L.P., an illiquid, non-traded limited partners, and Spirit of America Energy Fund (SOAEX), an energy mutual fund, were unsuitable.  The customer also alleged that Martin Lerner made material misrepresentations or omissions regarding both energy-sector securities.

If you have invested in Energy 11, Energy 12, SOAEX, or lost money with broker Martin Lerner or David Lerner Associates, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Department of Enforcement has filed a disciplinary proceeding complaint against former broker Adam Belardino.  The complaint alleges that Mr. Belardino failed to cooperate with a FINRA investigation, which was initiated in Aril 2019 after Mr. Belardino’ s employment was terminated by MML Investors Services, LLC and disclosed (through a Form U5) that it discharged Mr. Belardino “in connection with [an] investigation into a customer complaint.  The Form U5 (Uniform Termination Notice for Securities Industry Registration) also disclosed a complaint from customers alleging that beginning in November of 2018, Mr. Belardino “misrepresented [the customers’] account values, engaged in excessive levels of trading, and failed to comply with requests to have their accounts liquidated and the proceeds distributed.  Additional customer complaints were subsequently disclosed, including a customer alleging that “the REITs that were sold to him [by Mr. Balardino] beginning in or around 2014 were unsuitable for his conservative portfolio.”

At the time of the alleged conduct, Mr. Balardino was associated with MML Investors Services, LLC (“MML Investor Services”) in Elmsford, New York.  Prior to being a broker at MML Investor Services, Mr. Belardino was associated with MSI Financial Services, Inc. (“MSI Financial Services”), also in Elmsford, New York.

If you or a loved one were a customer of broker Adam Belardino, MML Investor Services, LLC, or MSI Financial Services, Inc.,  contact securities arbitration law firm Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential review of your legal rights.

This post is part of a series of investigative blog posts that spotlight modern-day boiler rooms that operate under the guise of a reputable brokerage firm.  Many of the broker-dealers featured in this series still use boiler room tactics such as cold-calling customers and high-pressure or aggressive sales tactics.  Other brokerage firms have a propensity for broker misconduct, such as excessive trading, churning, unauthorized trades, and misrepresentation.  Iorio Altamirano LLP is a securities arbitration law firm based in New York City. We represent investors nationwide who have suffered investment losses due to wrongful conduct by financial advisors and brokerage firms.  We are investor advocates.

Other Investigative Blog Posts:

You worked hard, opened a brokerage or retirement account, and invested your savings with a financial advisor or stockbroker, only to suffer financial losses due to bad investment advice, misleading sales pitches, or brokers that were driven by commissions.  Now what?

Can I Sue My Financial Advisor Over Losses?

Yes, you can sue your financial advisor or broker to recover investment losses if the broker did not have your best interest in mind when they made an investment recommendation or offered investment advice.  You can also sue your financial advisor or broker if the financial advisor misrepresented or omitted material facts that an investor should have known about the security or investment strategy.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended financial advisor Constantinos Maniatis from the securities industry for 30 days.  Mr. Maniatis consented to the suspension after FINRA alleged that he engaged in discretionary trading without written authorization in seven customer accounts between May 4, 2018, and February 27, 2019.  FINRA also fined Mr. Maniatis $5,000.

The alleged conduct occurred while Morgan Stanley employed Mr. Maniatis in Dallas, Texas.   Morgan Stanley discharged Mr. Maniatis in May 2019, alleging misconduct related to a non-discretionary account and diverting of revenue from “assigned rep code.”

If you have suffered financial losses investing with Constantinos Maniatis, or suspect that Mr. Maniatis did not have your best interest in mind when recommending investments or making account transactions, contact New York securities arbitration law firm Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential review of your brokerage account.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has barred stockbroker David Martirosian from the securities industry.  Mr. Martirosian was expelled from the brokerage industry for refusing to cooperate with a FINRA investigation into potentially unsuitable and excessive trading and his potential participation in private securities transactions while associated with Joseph Stone Capital L.L.C. (“Joseph Stone Capital”).

Mr. Martirosian, who had only 13 years of experience in the securities industry, had a history of associations disreputable broker-dealers, customer complaints, and tax liens.

Mr. Martirosian was employed by Joseph Stone Capital in New York from July 2016 until April 26, 2021

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended financial advisor Elias Hakimian from the securities industry for three months.  Mr. Hakimian consented to the suspension after FINRA alleged that he borrowed $120,000 from a customer without notice to or obtaining written pre-approval from his employing brokerage firm, LPL Financial LLC, in violation of FINRA Rules 3240 and 2010.  FINRA also fined Mr. Hakimian $5,000.

LPL Financial LLC allowed Mr. Hakimian to “voluntarily resign” after a customer alleged that he engaged in churning in the customer’s accounts and invested the customer’s funds in speculative ventures contrary to the customer’s objectives and risk tolerance, in addition to taking loans from the customer.

Excessive trading occurs when a financial advisor makes many trades in a customer’s account, not to benefit the customer but to generate commissions for the broker.

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