On the SEC's website we learn that the Securities and Exchange Commission announced the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts has charged Andrey C. Hicks of Boston, Mass., in a criminal complaint unsealed on Friday, October 28, 2011. Hicks was charged with committing wire fraud, attempting to commit wire fraud, and aiding and abetting wire fraud, […]

In an article for InvestmentNews.com, November 9th., 2011, Mark Schoeff Jr. writes that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) engaged in an unprecedented crackdown on investment advisers over the last year, contributing to an overall surge in agency enforcement. The SEC announced that it filed 146 enforcement actions against investment advisers and investment companies during the […]

The following are excerpts from Richard G. Ketchum, Chairman and CEO of FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Research Center on the Prevention of Financial Fraud in Washington, DC, Thursday, November 3, 2011. "We bring together policymakers, researchers, practitioners, law enforcement and others to discuss how we can better share […]

The following appeared on FINRA's website in 'Disciplinary Actions, October, 2011.' TD Ameritrade, Inc. (CRD #7870, Bellevue, Nebraska)  submitted a Letter of AcceptanceWaiver and Consent in which the firm was censured and fined $100,000 by FINRA. Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of findings […]

  BATS Trading, Inc. (CRD #136734, Lenexa, Kansas)   Have submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which the firm was censured and fined $307,500. Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of findings that it executed numerous short sale transactions on its […]

The FBI is investigating two former Edward Jones brokers based in South Dakota for their role in a “selling-away” case that involved raising money from clients who invested in an alleged Ponzi scheme writes Bruce Kelly in a September 28, 2011, article in InvestmentNews.com. Kelly writes that according to Jones, a client brought the matter […]

In a Bloomberg News article from October 25, 2011, we learn that UBS AG, Switzerland’s largest bank, will pay $12 million to resolve Financial Industry Regulatory Authority claims that a brokerage unit allowed millions of short-sale orders to be placed without reasonable grounds to believe that the securities could be delivered. The article points out […]

On October 4, 2011, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. or FINRA,  issued an alert to investors that outlines the nontraded real estate investment trusts (REITs) features and potential drawbacks, such as high fees and a lack of liquidity. As the name suggests, nontraded REITs aren't listed on a national exchange writes Bruce Kelly for InvestmentNews.com. “Turbulence in […]

The following press release was from the State of Colorado regarding a settlement with E*Trade over the firm's auction rate securities issues. Colorado Securities Commissioner Announces Settlement of its Auction Rate Securities Enforcement Action against E*TRADE The Colorado Securities Commissioner Fred Joseph announced today that a settlement in principle has been reached between E*TRADE Securities, […]