AFinancial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) arbitration panel ordered Morgan Stanley and one of their advisors, STEVEN PHILIP ANDERSON (STEVE ANDERSON, STEVEN P ANDERSON) CRD#: 1254635 to return a client’s investment in two private placement funds, which totaled $536,000 and also pay him $37,500 in damages for what the client claimed were unsuitable investments.
The client, a 46-year-old entrepreneur who sold an advertising technology company in 2013, said he invested the money from the sale of his business with Morgan Stanley advisor Steven Anderson who was a friend of his father-in-law.
The client later accused STEVEN PHILIP ANDERSON of breach of fiduciary duty, and allegations of placing him in illiquid and extremely risky private equity funds. The client alleges that he was an inexperienced investor with a moderate risk tolerance with no investment experience of any kind.
The client alleged that STEVEN PHILIP ANDERSON inflated his net worth to qualify him for the two funds, which also gave Anderson and Morgan Stanley huge upfront fees. At one point, Anderson allegedly inflated his client’s net worth by almost $10 million.
Anderson was also accused of withholding the performance reports for his investment advisory account and lying to his client about the portfolio's performance. The client alleged that the investments were concentrated in risky sectors, such and energy and emerging markets, causing him to sustain significant investment losses.
In addition to the client getting his money back and being awarded $37,000 in compensatory damages, he was also granted $90,500 for the costs he incurred to hire expert witnesses. The panel denied Anderson's request to have the complaint expunged from his records.
According to FINRA’s BrokerCheck, STEVEN PHILIP ANDERSON has been in the securities industry for 32 years and has been listed with six firms. He is currently listed, since 6/1/2009, with:
MORGAN STANLEY
THREE FIRST NATIONAL PLAZA 70 W. MADISON ST. SUITE 300
CHICAGO, IL 60602
If you experienced losses due to Morgan Stanley of Chicago broker, STEVEN PHILIP ANDERSON, call Soreide Law Group for a no-cost consultation with an experienced securities lawyer regarding the possible recovery of your investment losses through a FINRA arbitration at: 888-760-6552.
Soreide Law Group represents clients nationwide before FINRA. We operate on a contingency fee basis, no fee if no recovery.