ANGEL W BARDECHE Fined and Suspended

ANGEL WYNETTE BARDECHE (ANGEL W BARDECHE, ANGEL WYNETTE LENTZ) CRD#: 4698117, was fined and suspended by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) on January 6, 2021. Bardeche is a former Ameriprise Financial broker of Cincinnati, Ohio, who allegedly generated $450,000 in commissions from unsuitable mutual fund switches over a two year period according to a recent article in Advisor Hub.
ANGEL W BARDECHE agreed to a nine-month suspension and a $10,000 fine and also $5,000 in disgorgement to resolve FINRA’s allegations of costly mutual fund trading, according to a letter of settlement.
According to FINRA, without admitting or denying the findings, ANGEL W BARDECHE consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that she allegedly recommended and effected an unsuitable strategy in recommending that her clients effect a pattern of switching of Class A mutual fund shares, including short-term liquidations.
FINRA’s findings stated that ANGEL W BARDECHE allegedly recommended clients purchase Class A mutual fund shares, later sell those funds, and then use the proceeds to buy more Class A mutual fund shares. In some instances, the client sold the first Class A mutual fund within 18 months of purchasing it, and in some instances the customer sold the first Class A mutual fund within a year of its purchase. The clients paid a total of about $450,000 in sales charges on the switches.
According to FINRA, Bardeche also allegedly recommended costly back-to-back, short-term switches. For example, Bardeche recommended that a senior client sell Class A shares that the client had held for only 10 months and use the proceeds to buy new Class A shares that included over $3,100 in new sales charges. FIRNA stated that approximately eight months later,  ANGEL W BARDECHE recommended that the client sell again and use the proceeds in a switch to buy other Class A shares that carried over $2,600 in new sales charges. Bardeche did not have a reasonable basis to believe that this recommended pattern of switching and short-term liquidations of mutual fund Class A shares was suitable for her clients.
FINRA’s findings also alleged that ANGEL W BARDECHE exercised discretion by effecting trades in non-discretionary client accounts, without prior written authorization from the clients and without prior written approval by her member firm.
The Advisor Hub article states that between January 2017 and March 2019, Bardeche recommended 112 short-term ‘switches’ of Class A mutual funds in 32 customer accounts. Class A funds carry large up-front sales charges and “are generally only suitable as long-term investments,” according to FINRA. FINRA said ANGEL W BARDECHE allegedly made 109 trades in eight non-discretionary client accounts without prior written authorization during the two-year period.
Ameriprise has paid $380,000 in settlements to four of Bardeche’s former clients since 2019, according to BrokerCheck, which added that the broker did not contribute to the amount.
According to FINRA’s BrokerCheck, ANGEL W BARDECHE has been in the securities industry for 15 years and has been listed with 4 firms. She has 6 Disclosures on her CRD report, 4 of them are Customer Disputes.  Bardeche was discharged from Ameriprise Financial in April of 2019, the most recent firm she was listed with:
08/10/2012 - 05/16/2019  AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC - Cincinnati, OH 
If you’ve experienced financial losses due to the actions or recommendations of the former AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC of Cincinnati, OH, broker ANGEL W BARDECHE, contact Soreide Law Group and speak to a lawyer at no cost regarding the possible recovery of your investment losses through a FINRA arbitration at:  888-760-6552.
Soreide Law Group works on a contingency fee and represents clients nationwide before FINRA.