JOHN C STARKE Formerly of Centaurus

Soreide Law Group is currently investigating claims by investors who may have been recommended purchasing high-risk, illiquid investments including but not limited to, GWG L bonds by broker, JOHN CALDERWOOD STARKE SR (JOHN C STARKE, JOHN CALDERWOOD STARKE).

According to FINRA’s BrokerCheck, available to the public on FINRA’s website, JOHN C STARKE was last listed with CENTAURUS FINANCIAL INC of Mechanicsville, Virginia, from 06/26/2015 - 01/02/2024.

JOHN C STARKE, according to BrokerCheck has been in the securities industry for 24 years and has been listed with 9 firms.  Stark has 22 disclosures on his FINRA CRD report, ALL 22 DISCLOSURES ARE “CUSTOMER DISPUTES.”

The significance of JOHN C STARKE’s 22 disclosures is underscored in FINRA NOTICE to MEMBERS 03-49. FINRA conducted a review of the CRD’s of all registered representatives, only .41% had been the subject of 3 or more customer complaints. In other words, JOHN C STARKE’s customer complaints rank him in the top one-hundredth percent of all registered representatives for customer complaints. 

Several of the complaints have settled and the following are just two examples. There is a “Customer Dispute” dated 5/20/2024 filed against Starke that alleged, “The customers allege that the Registered Representative recommended and misrepresented unsuitable, high-risk, illiquid investments and breached his fiduciary duty. No specific dates for the alleged activity were identified in the Statement of Claim.”  The damage amount requested was $100,000.00, and the settlement amount was $135,000.00.

Another “Customer Dispute” filed against JOHN C STARKE dated 6/6/2023 alleged, “The customers allege that the Registered Representative recommended unsuitable, high risk and illiquid investments. No specific dates for the alleged activity were identified in the Statement of Claim.”  The damage amount requested was $500,000.00 and the settlement amount was $612,500.00.  Starke denies any wrongdoing.

GWG L Bonds were issued by GWG Holdings, Inc., a financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The bonds were structured as corporate debt instruments. Investor money was pooled by GWG to acquire life insurance policies in the secondary market. The idea was that death benefits from these policies would eventually provide cash flow to repay investors. Billions of dollars were raised through these offerings, and the bonds were placed in many client portfolios through brokerage firms across the United States. In April of 2022, GWG Holdings filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy which could potentially wipe out a significant portion of investors’ savings.

Many investors, including elderly retirees, were allegedly misled into believing GWG L Bonds were low-risk, secure investments, when in fact GWG L Bonds were high-risk and considered unsuitable for many investors. GWG L Bonds are speculative, high-risk, and illiquid securities sold as private placement through broker/dealers nationwide. The L Bonds were not suitable for investors with a low-risk tolerance. GWG sold the L Bonds through broker/dealers.

Soreide Law Group has successfully brought dozens of cases before FINRA involving GWG L Bond sales.  If your broker/dealer or financial advisor recommended GWG L bonds to you and you’ve suffered devastating losses, contact Soreide Law Group and speak to an experienced securities lawyer at no cost regarding the possible recovery of your financial losses at:  888-760-6552.

Soreide Law Group represents our clients nationwide before FINRA on a contingency fee basis.