Patrick Alan Deramus (CRD #1718409, Registered Principal, Tampa, Florida) submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he was fined $5,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for six months. Without admitting or denying the findings, Deramus consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of findings […]

Robert Nunes Da Frota (CRD #2137208, Registered Representative, Fort Myers, Florida) submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he was fined $10,000, suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for six months and ordered to make full repayment of the outstanding balance on a customer’s loan. Without admitting or […]

Clifford Jagodzinski, formerly of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC (MSSB), claims he was fired for blowing the whistle on one of the firm's newest wealth managers, Harvey Kadden. According to the complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, Kadden “was flipping preferred securities in a manner that was generating […]

The following appeared on FINRA's website under, "“Disciplinary and Other FINRA Actions, September, 2012.” Andrew Glen Rosenberg (CRD #2944124, Registered Principal, Weston, Florida) submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he was fined $10,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for three months. Without admitting or denying […]

On September 9th, 2012, at the annual meeting of the North American Securities Administrators Association Inc. (NASAA) in Coronado, California, the top five types of violations in some areas of supervision at broker-dealers were: failure to follow written supervisory policies, suitability, correspondence/e-mail, maintenance of customer account information and internal audits, according to the results of […]

Raymond James, FINRA ID # 11-03503 (Bradenton, FL, 8/21/2012) A split FINRA arbitration panel awarded $985,700, including triple damages, to an elderly customer on his misappropriation claim. This award against Paul David Arnold, and Raymond James and Associates, Inc., of Bradenton, Florida, involved the purchasing of an annuity, electronic transfers and conversion of funds of […]

Merrill Lynch has agreed this week to pay a $400,000 fine in a 'fund-churning' case brought by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. (FINRA). Merrill will also pay $139,718 in restitution to the customers involved. Allegedly Merrill failed to supervise it's former broker David Bredenburg, who worked in the Towson, Md. office. FINRA claimed Merrill […]

In a California appeals court ruling that makes it easier for brokers to expunge customer complaints and disciplinary actions from their records, many feel it could have far-reaching implications for brokers everywhere, writes Dan Jamieson in an August 31st. article from InvestmentNews.com. In an Aug. 23, 2012, decision, the California Court of Appeal for the […]

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted yesterday to allow the issuers of private securities, such as hedge funds, to advertise their offerings and make solicitations to the public writes Dan Jamieson for InvestmentNews.com. This rule change is mandated under the "Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act." Solicitation and advertising of private offerings, which would include […]