merrill lynch

“Where’s My Order?” Apparently, Merrill Lynch Customers Had No Idea: Merrill Lynch Agrees to Pay $42 Million Settlement For Allegedly Re-Rerouting Customer Orders To Electronic Platforms And Creating False Reports

June 22, 2018 | Malecki Law Team

The SEC settlement indicates that Merrill Lynch sent millions of dollars in customer orders to other broker-dealers for execution while purposely concealing their activity as part of their so-called “masking.” practice. For five years, Merrill Lynch had routed some orders to broker-dealers referred to as “ELP”s, or “Electronic Liquidity Partners.” Merrill Lynch was routing their customer orders into smaller “child orders” for execution at ELPs and other external entities. Meanwhile, Merrill Lynch hid the involvement of ELPs and informed customers that all transactions occurred within the firm. The SEC alleged that Merrill Lynch created false reports; altered code to reconfigure FIX messaging systems; modified Transaction Cost Analysis reports and more to Merrill Lynch as the execution venue incorrectly. Did customers experience bad executions? Why create false reports?

Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Smith Incorporated has agreed to pay a $42 million-dollar settlement Securities and Exchange Commission for federal securities laws violations according to an Order Instituting Administrative and Cease-and-Desist Proceedings. According to the SEC’s order released Tuesday, Merrill Lynch admitted to fraudulently deceiving clients about the handling of their millions of orders to buy and trade stock. The Securities and Exchange Commission finds that Merrill Lynch “willfully violated” Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act. The case is an unfortunate reminder of the risks that even the most careful investors deal with when trusting financial institutions.

Merrill Lynch Pierce, Fenner and Smith Incorporated is a FINRA registered brokerage firm and investment advisor with 1559 total disclosures according to (CRD #7691) records on BrokerCheck. Although a Delaware corporation, Merrill Lynch’s principal offices are in Bryant Park, New York. Merrill Lynch’s business conduct includes mutual fund retail, investment advisory services; retailing corporate equity securities; selling variable life insurance or annuities, along with other securities and non-securities transactions.

Potential Claims for Investors in Merrill Lynch Structured Notes

August 30, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

The investment and securities fraud attorneys at Malecki Law are interested in hearing from investors who have purchased structured notes or other complex products from Merrill Lynch or its parent company, Bank of America.

According to a recent SEC press release, “Merrill Lynch has agreed to pay a $10 million penalty to settle charges that it was responsible for misleading statements in offering materials provided to retail investors for structured notes linked to a proprietary volatility index.” The issues surrounding the notes stemmed, at least in part, from disclosure of the fees paid by investors and the fee structure related to the “volatility index” to which the notes were linked, per the SEC.

For example, the notes reportedly were subject to a 2% sales commission and 0.75% annual fee. According to the SEC, for investors to earn back their original investment on the maturity date, the index would need to increase by at least 5.93%. The SEC also alleged that the offering materials failed to “adequately disclose” the 1.5% execution factor, which was an additional cost.

BROKER REPORT: Financial Advisor Michael A. Margiotta

August 3, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

The securities fraud attorneys at Malecki Law are interested in hearing from investors who have complaints against stockbroker Michael Margiotta. Mr. Margiotta has been employed and registered since June 2015 with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., a broker-dealer, according to his publicly available BrokerCheck, as maintained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Per his BrokerCheck report, prior to his employment Merrill Lynch, Mr. Margiotta was employed by UBS Financial Services Inc. from October 2008 to June 2015, and with Citigroup Global Markets Inc. from December 2003 to November 2008, as well as other prior firms.

Mr. Margiotta’s BrokerCheck report indicates that he has received two customer complaints. The first complaint received by Mr. Margiotta involved allegations that he purchased securities that were unsuitable for the investor and sought damages of $1 million, according to the BrokerCheck report. That complaint resulted in a settlement to the investor of $355,000 to the investor the BrokerCheck report details. The second complaint received by Mr. Margiotta alleged unsuitability and that the broker informed the client “oil had bottomed out for sure prompting [the investor] to purchase securities which plummeted,” according to BrokerCheck records.

BROKER REPORT: Wells Fargo’s Robert Ross

July 1, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

The investment and securities fraud attorneys at Malecki Law are interested in hearing from investors who have complaints regarding Wells Fargo financial advisor Robert Ross. According to his BrokerCheck report maintained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), Mr. Ross recently moved to Wells Fargo after spending 30 years at Merrill Lynch.

Mr. Ross was recently the subject of a customer complaint alleging unsuitable investment recommendations and excessive trading, per FINRA records. BrokerCheck indicates that an arbitration related to this customer complaint is presently pending.

Excessive trading, also known as churning, in the industry can be disastrous for a portfolio. When a broker trades an account excessively, large amounts of commissions and fees may be generated, if the account is commission based (as opposed to fee based). Churning is a classic example of a broker putting his or her own monetary gain above the best interests of his or her customer.

BROKER REPORT: Merrill Lynch’s Paul F. Kane

June 29, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

Malecki Law’s team of investment attorneys are interested in hearing from investors who have complaints regarding long-time Merrill Lynch Financial Advisor Paul F. Kane.

According to his BrokerCheck report maintained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), Mr. Kane is currently the subject of a pending customer dispute. The allegations include unsuitable investment recommendations, excessive trading and misrepresentation and omission of material facts, per FINRA. According to the disclosures on Mr. Kane’s BrokerCheck, the customer is requesting $1.1 million in damages.

Excessive trading, also known as churning in the industry, can be disastrous for a portfolio. When a broker trades an account excessively, large amounts of commissions and fees may be generated, if the account is commission based (as opposed to fee based). Churning is a classic example of a broker putting his or her own monetary gain above the best interests of his or her customer.

BROKER REPORT: Financial Advisor Kenneth Daley Barred from Conducting Securities Business

June 28, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

The securities fraud attorneys at Malecki Law are interested in hearing from investors who have complaints against stockbroker Kenneth Daley. Mr. Daley was employed and registered from October 2007 to June 2016 with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., a Garden City, New York broker-dealer, according to his publicly available BrokerCheck, as maintained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). According to BrokerCheck records, Mr. Daley voluntarily resigned from Merrill Lynch amid allegations that he was involved in “[c]onduct involving improperly receiving money from a client via checks written from an outside account.”

Per his BrokerCheck report, prior to his employment and subsequent resignation from Merrill Lynch, Mr. Daley was employed by Wachovia Securities from 2003 to October 2007.

Subsequent to his resignation, Mr. Daley was barred from association with any FINRA member broker-dealer on June 27, 2016 by FINRA, after submitting a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent No. 2016050129701 (AWC). According to the AWC, Mr. Daley violated:

INVESTIGATION ALERT: Malecki Law Announces Investigation Into Investor Losses in Oil Linked Structured Notes

February 9, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

The investment fraud attorneys at Malecki Law announce the firm’s investigation into potential securities law claims against broker-dealers relating to the improper sale of natural gas and oil linked structured notes and similar products to investors.

Malecki Law is interested in hearing from investors who purchased structured notes issued by well-known financial institutions, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch (NYSE: BAC), Citigroup (NYSE: C), Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), UBS (NYSE: UBS), and Barclays (NYSE: BCS).

These investment products, often bearing such names as “Phoenix,” “Plus,” “Enhanced Return,” “Principal Protected,” “Bullish,” “Leveraged Upside” or “Accelerated Return,” were reportedly marketed to investors as a way to make significant returns and income from the rising price of oil. In addition to promises of increased gains, investments like these are frequently also sold to investors with assurances that their potential losses would be limited and their initial investment would be protected.

Broker Transition: The Upfront Bonus/Forgivable Note

February 5, 2016 | Malecki Law Team

Thinking about leaving your broker-dealer? Looking to make the transition to a new firm?

It has been reported recently that brokers from Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and potentially Merrill Lynch are being heavily recruited to leave and join new broker-dealers. For those leaving Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, and Merrill (as it is for any FINRA registered representative) the choice to move to a new broker-dealer is not one that is made lightly. Whether a protocol move or a non-protocol move, many of the same issues remain at the forefront and need to be dealt with judiciously. One of these issues is the transition bonus/promissory note.

If you are fortunate enough to have a substantial book of business and significant gross production, you may have been offered an upfront transition bonus by a new broker-dealer. Frequently, these bonuses are awarded to reps in the form of Forgivable Promissory Notes. The basic structure of these “Notes” is as follows: The “bonus” is structured on paper as a loan. Over a set time period – usually five to seven years – the balance of the loan, including interest, is paid off or “forgiven” by the broker dealer.