Summit Brokerage Services

Scott Kaup

February 8, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Scott Vincent Kaup (CRD #1002907) is a registered broker and investment advisor currently employed with Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. (CRD #34643) of Stuart, NE. His previous employers include VSR Financial Services, Inc. (CRD #14503), also of Stuart, NE and American General Securities Incorporated (CRD #13626) of Phoenix, AZ. He has been in the business since 1981.

Lawrence-LaBine-Under-Fire-for-Alleged-Unsuitable-Recommendations-and-More-300x200 Kaup has two disclosures on his record. The first one, filed on 7/13/2018, alleges “unsuitable investment recommendations, material misrepresentations and omissions, and supervisory due diligence failures.” The client is requesting damages of $2,600,000.00. No additional information is available.

The second dispute was filed on 4/25/2016. This claim alleges that Kaup, from 3/30/2001 to 6/14/2010, breached his fiduciary duty, violated common law fraud regulations, made unsuitable recommendations for investments and committed negligence. The claim was settled for $173,000. Kaup denied all claims.

Misconduct-Riddled Former Ohio-based Broker Under Investigation Amidst Pending FINRA Arbitrations

May 25, 2017 | Silver Law Group

Silver Law Group is investigating former Ohio-based Concorde Investment Services, LLC (CRD# 151604) broker Larry S. Werbel (CRD# 828351) for three pending FINRA arbitrations and a litany of disclosures on his FINRA BrokerCheck report.

According to Werbel’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, Werbel has three pending FINRA arbitrations filed in the last four months that allege unsuitable recommendations, failure to supervise, fraud, breach of duty of loyalty, and negligence for an aggregate amount of over $1.25 million. At least one of the complaints alleges securities violations spanning back to Werbel’s employment with LPL Financial LLC (CRD# 6413) from February 2009 to February 2011.

FINRA’s BrokerCheck tool is a valuable way to examine a broker’s background. The investor tool discloses FINRA arbitrations that have been settled, are pending or have been denied; bankruptcies, civil judgments and tax liens; employment separations and other discharges; criminal proceedings; and regulatory actions. According to an InvestmentNews report, only about 12 percent of financial advisors have any type of disclosure events on their records.

Former Cetera-related Broker Clay E. Hoffman Has 19 BrokerCheck Disclosures; FINRA Actions

February 27, 2017 | Silver Law Group

Silver Law Group is investigating former Georgia-based Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. (CRD# 34643) broker Clay E. Hoffman (CRD# 4371162) due to multiple FINRA actions pending against him and his racking up of 16 BrokerCheck disclosures in the past five years.

FINRA has initiated four regulatory actions against Hoffman in 2016, according to Hoffman’s FINRA BrokerCheck report. Our attorneys have been monitoring FINRA’s actions against Hoffman.

The first, initiated in February, alleged Hoffman exercised discretion in a customer’s account and made unauthorized transactions without written authorization from the customer or the approval of Hoffman’s firm. Hoffman was fined $5,000 and suspended for 15 days.

Summit Brokerage Services Broker Keith A. Bradley Under Investigation for Unsuitable Recommendations and Negligence Allegations

January 17, 2017 | Silver Law Group

Silver Law Group is investigating Houston, Texas-based Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. (CRD# 34643) broker Keith A. Bradley (CRD# 868141) after a customer filed a FINRA arbitration alleging unsuitable recommendations and negligence.

According to Bradley’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, a customer filed a FINRA arbitration against Bradley in July 2016 alleging unsuitable investments, negligence, and $100,000 in damages.

In addition to the FINRA arbitration filing, Bradley has four other disclosures on his FINRA BrokerCheck report. The other four are all tax liens accrued in separate cases. His first came in 1989 and is for an unspecified amount. His second tax lien was in 1999 in the amount of $109,000. His third came three years later in 2002 in an amount of $108,000. His most recent tax lien was in 2011 in the amount of $400,000.

Cetera Subsidiaries Ordered to Pay More Than $6 Million for Variable Annuities Violations

January 17, 2017 | Silver Law Group

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) fined eight firms, including VOYA Financial Advisors (CRD# 2882) (“VOYA”) and five broker-dealer subsidiaries of Cetera Financial Group (Cetera Advisor Networks LLC (CRD# 13572)), for failing to supervise sales of variable annuities (VAs). The eight firms are required to pay a fine of $6.2 million in total.

The eight firms and the respective fines are as follow: VOYA, fined $2.75 million; Cetera Advisor Networks, fined $750,000; Cetera Financial Specialists LLC (CRD# 10358), fined $350,000; First Allied Securities, Inc. (CRD# 32444), fined $950,000; Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. (CRD# 34643), fined $500,000; VSR Financial Services, Inc. (CRD# 14503), fined $400,000; Kestra Investment Services, LLC (CRD# 42046), fined $475,000; and FTB Advisors, Inc. (CRD# 17117), fined $250,000.

Cetera Financial Group owns Cetera Financial Specialists, Cetera Advisor Networks, First Allied, Summit, and VSR. For more information on Cetera, visit our firm’s background page on the broker-dealer and its subsidiaries.