Frank Fornshell Venable III of Knoxville Tennessee a stockbroker currently registered with Morgan Stanley has been fined by Tennessee Securities Division based upon Venable having been sanctioned by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for effecting discretionary trades in customer accounts. Case No. TSD No. 20-013 (June 26, 2020). The Securities Division found Venable to be in violation of Tennessee securities laws.
Venable has been fined $5,000.00 and suspended from associating with any FINRA member in any capacity supported by findings of him effecting unauthorized trades in customer accounts. Letter of Acceptance Waiver and Consent No. 2017056098601 (Jan. 3, 2019).
According to the AWC, between January of 2014 and March of 2016, the stockbroker traded in at least five Morgan Stanley customers’ accounts without getting written authorization from them. The regulator indicates that 400 trades were made by Venable on a discretionary basis. He never received Morgan Stanley’s permission to exercise discretion in those customers’ accounts. The AWC also indicates that from 2014 to 2016, false responses had been provided by Venable in annual compliance questionnaires that he had provided to Morgan Stanley. Venable violated FINRA Rule 2010 and National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) Rule 2510(b) in this respect.
Venable has been identified in five customer initiated investment related disputes containing accusations of his improper conduct while registered with Morgan Stanley, JC Bradford Co. and JJB Hilliard WL Lyons Inc. FINRA Public Disclosure reveals that Venable is the subject of a customer initiated investment related written complaint where the customer requested $7,096.00 in damages founded on allegations that the customer’s JJB Hilliard WL Lyons account was churned and that unsuitable trades were made in their account causing them to experience poor performance on equities.
Another customer filed an investment related complaint regarding Venable’s conduct in which they sought $19,000.00 in damages based upon accusations that misrepresentations had been made by the stockbroker in regard to the safety of First Merchants bonds. The complaint indicates that the customer was provided conflicting information concerning their investment performance.
Venable is also referenced in a customer initiated investment related written complaint where the customer requested $35,725.00 in damages supported by allegations that the stockbroker unsuitably allocated their account at Hilliard Lyons. Another customer filed an investment related complaint involving Venable’s activities in which they sought compensatory damages founded on accusations of unsuitable annuity transactions.
On January 22, 2021, an additional customer initiated investment related FINRA securities arbitration claim involving Venable’s conduct was settled for $6,800,000.00 in damages based upon allegations of excessive trading of structured products, unit investment trusts and mutual funds in customers’ accounts by Venable during the time that he was associated with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. FINRA Arbitration No. 17-02833. The claim alleges that Venable failed to get written authorization from customers for trades that he made between 2008 and 2016.
Since June 1, 2009, Venable has been registered with Morgan Stanley as a stockbroker and as an investment adviser representative.
