SEC Files Fraud Charges Against Windsor Street Broker Jovannie Aquino

Jovannie Aquino (CRD#: 4876661, New York, New York) is a previous registered representative of Windsor Street Capital, LP (May 29, 2014 to November 17, 2017). The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged Aquino with defrauding Windsor Street Capital investors by way of his excessive trading. United States Securities and Exchange Commission vs. Jovannie Aquino, Case #: 1:18-cv-08191, filed September 7, 2018.

Windsor Street Broker Accused Of Fraud

The Complaint stated that between December 2015 and November 2017, while Aquino was associated with Windsor Street Capital, he excessively traded in retail customer accounts. By doing so, Aquino accumulated hefty commissions even though customers suffered drastic losses.
Aquino allegedly convinced a total of seven customer to hold their securities accounts at Windsor Street by assuring them that they would generate profits through Aquino’s trading strategy. Aquino then advised the customers to trade frequently. Those short-term trades reportedly caused fees and commissions to add up.
SEC claimed that Aquino’s frequent trading and extensive commissions made it nearly impossible for the customers to generate profits. Those customers, according to the Complaint, would have needed to make returns ranging from 21 percent to 406 percent in order to cover the costs of the transactions recommended by Aquino.
SEC noted that it was a requirement for Aquino to maintain a reasonable basis in believing his trading strategy was suitable for customers he advised. Aquino allegedly lacked a reasonable basis because of the transactions costs and the frequency of trading. In fact, the SEC claimed that it would not be reasonable for Aquino’s trading to be recommended to any investor. SEC claimed that Aquino’s trading recommendations were not appropriate for six of the firm’s customers given the customer’s investment objectives, financial needs and risk tolerance.
Moreover, the Complaint alleged that Aquino’s conduct was deceptive and fraudulent because of him placing trades in customers’ accounts without first gaining consent from the customers. Not only that – Aquino failed to inform customers about the facts pertaining to his trading strategy. As a result, Aquino’s alleged fraudulent conduct led customers to sustain losses totaling $881,000.00 while Aquino accumulated ill-gotten gains totaling $935,000.00. The SEC charged Aquino with violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5.
FINRA BrokerCheck discloses that the following four customers have disputed Aquino’s sales practices by collectively alleging churning, excessive commissions, failure to follow instructions, and unauthorized trading:
1) On March 7, 2012, a John Thomas Financial customer filed a complaint alleging unauthorized trading. The customer alleged that Aquino placed the trades without the customer’s permission, causing the customer to incur $7,185.00 in damages. The complaint was closed as of March 12, 2012.
2) A customer of Rockwell Global Capital, LLC filed a complaint on August 10, 2012. The customer contended that Aquino made unauthorized trades in the customer’s brokerage account. Rockwell settled the customer’s complaint for $12,000.00 on August 27, 2012.
3) On June 5, 2017, a Windsor Street Capital, L.P. customer brought a complaint containing allegations of churning, margin misuse, excessive commissions, failure to follow instructions, and unauthorized trading. The claims apparently related to the customer’s options and equity transactions from January 2017 to April 2017. The complaint was closed as of March 14, 2018.
4) A customer of Windsor Street Capital LP filed an arbitration claim on July 23, 2018. The claim contained allegations of Aquino’s sales practice violations pertaining to the customer’s stock holdings. Apparently, the customer has demanded $171,851.00 in damages. Case #: 58-CV-18-327. The litigation is still ongoing.
FINRA BrokerCheck also reveals that Aquino was terminated from at least one of his former employers for misconduct. Specifically, Rockwell Global Capital discharged Aquino on November 18, 2011, citing allegations that Aquino charged the customer commissions that the customer did not agree to. Aquino was most recently registered with Spartan Capital Securities LLC (November 9, 2017 – September 11, 2018).

Investors who have incurred losses from Jovannie Aquino are encouraged to contact Soreide Law Group at (888) 760-6552 for a free consultation. Our firm has recovered millions of dollars for investors who have suffered losses due to broker and brokerage firm misconduct. We represent clients on a contingency fee basis and advance all costs.