Articles Posted in Mutual Funds

Scott Silver, managing partner of Silver Law Group and a leading investor advocate, recently submitted a comment letter to the SEC addressing the importance of mutual funds fairly characterizing the fund in its title or name. The SEC says that it sought comments from the public “on the framework for…

You may have heard the term “churning” in discussions of investments and securities. But you probably won’t know what it means unless you’ve actually experienced it. (Hint: it has nothing to do with butter.) “Churning” is when a broker and/or firm conducted extra trading in your account for the sole…

The Wall Street Journal reported that Fidelity Investments is the subject of a Labor Department probe and a lawsuit by an investor in a T-Mobile 401(k) plan, regarding the disclosure of an “infrastructure fee” it charges mutual funds for using their FundsNetwork asset management platform. The lawsuit claims that Fidelity…

Leon Vaccarelli allegedly defrauded a total of nine clients out of more than $1 million In May, former financial advisor Leon Vaccarelli was charged with 12 counts of fraud and money laundering in a federal court in Connecticut. If convicted on all of them, he could receive a maximum penalty…

How the company has violated or been accused of violating FINRA regulations It is always important for investors to have a good understanding of the financial professionals they work with. Before handing over money to anyone, brokers should be vetted properly. This is why the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)…

These four brokers have been accused of numerous infractions National Securities Corporation has been operating for decades and has offices and brokers all over the U.S. Unfortunately, however, a significant percentage of their brokers have been involved in numerous customer complaints. Here are just a few examples of how National…

Several older investors reportedly fell victim to the scam, including a former police officer From 2013 to 2014, several senior citizens living in South Florida invested over $400,000 in Blue Ocean Farm, a fish farm company. Three purported financial professionals reportedly solicited funds for the farm – Rebecca Gonzalez and…

According to some reports, nearly 1/3 of National Securities brokers have had regulatory issues, legal disputes, or personal financial problems that have been disclosed to investors National Securities Corporation is one of the oldest financial firms in the U.S., dating back over 70 years. Its the main office is in…

The elder financial fraud allegations reportedly cost elderly investors over $1M of retirement savings Once a prominent Methodist pastor in Houston, Texas, Kirbyjon Caldwell is now charged by the SEC with numerous counts of money laundering and wire fraud. The charges are directly related to a scheme Caldwell and his…

James J. Mariani (CRD #2932631) is a currently registered broker with Aegis Capital Corp. (CRD #15007) of Bayside, New York. He has been with Aegis for less than one year. His previous employers include: National Securities Corporation (CRD #7569) of Mineola, NY First Montauk Securities Corp. (CRD #13755) of Port…