Compliance

How often should CCOs pay a visit to branch offices?

An unregistered advisor with little investing experience raised $1.4 million from family and friends and then squandered the money on bad investments, federal prosecutors say.

Jamie Price doesn’t expect the firm's advisors to have any problem with a new standard after taking steps to comply with the more restrictive DOL rule.

“The broker-dealer world has tried to hang their hat on suitability, and if you close your eyes a little and squint, they almost look like fiduciaries — but not really,” one advisor says.

If it's not uniform, and it's not a fiduciary standard, then it is at best a modest step forward, investor advocates say.

It appears the regulator bought into the investor choice argument of sales reps right from the beginning.

The claim alleged negligence, fraud and misrepresentation, according to the regulator.

The commission's new risk alert focuses on fees and expenses and amplifies its focus on disclosures and compensation structures.

Former CEO Mark Casady disclosed in arbitration testimony what led to the firing that resulted in a $30 million claim against the firm.

The payout brings the distribution to more than $1.2 billion, a fraction of the more than $50 billion scam.