Galvin Asks Fidelity to Repurchase ARS

William F. Galvin, Massachusetts secretary of the commonwealth, has written a letter to Fidelity Chairman Edward C. Johnson III asking the firm to repurchase auction-rate securities that it sold to investors through its brokerage unit, Dow Jones reports.

The letter references complaints Galvin’s office has received from investors.

“It is my hope that Fidelity will follow the industry trend and promptly repurchase these securities that it has sold to its customers, many of whom now find themselves unable to access money that they thought was as liquid as cash,” Galvin’s letter says.

Fidelity spokespeople have gone on record twice now saying that only a few Fidelity customers own auction-rate securities, which it began offering two years ago.

Meanwhile New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is investigating both Fidelity and Charles Schwab as to how they sold auction-rate securities.