Jack B. McBride, of Farmington Hills, Michigan, a stockbroker formerly registered with Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., was fined $12,500.00 and suspended from associating with any Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member in any capacity by consenting to findings that he mismarked order tickets, engaged in misleading communications with a customer, and settled a customer dispute away from his firm. Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent, No. 2014042223301 (Oct. 9, 2017).
According to the AWC, in July of 2013, McBride botched a transaction involving customer KA’s accounts, where he caused the customer to incur a margin balance and pay margin interest. The customer reportedly notified McBride in January of 2014, during which time McBride attempted to settle the customer’s complaint away from the firm. Yet, he never informed the firm that the customer complained or that he failed to execute the customer’s instructions correctly. FINRA found that McBride’s conduct in that regard was violative of FINRA Rule 2010.
The AWC stated that McBride also distributed fourteen summaries of KA’s portfolio values between January of 2013 and February of 2014, in which he overstated the actual value of KA’s account by as much as $570,000.00. FINRA found that McBride misled the customer by distributing inflated account values. Consequently, FINRA found McBride’s conduct in violation of FINRA Rules 2210.
Evidently, four customers acting upon McBride’s recommendations effected fourteen purchases of non-traditional exchange traded funds between January and December of 2013, during the period in which McBride was prohibited by his firm from making those recommendations. McBride reportedly made reference to the transactions having been unsolicited when they were, in fact, recommended by him. McBride found McBride to have violated FINRA Rules 2010 and 4511 as a result.
FINRA Public Disclosure reveals that McBride has been subject of five customer disputes regarding allegations of his improper conduct while he was employed with Olde Discount Corporation, H&R Block Financial Advisors, Inc., and Ameriprise Financial. Specifically, between November 15, 1999, and April 7, 2003, two customers filed initiated investment related complaints involving McBride’s activities, requesting a total of $51,100.00 in damages based upon allegations of unauthorized trading.
On February 23, 2015, McBride was subject of a customer initiated investment related written complaint, wherein the customer alleged $4,837,174.00 in damages based upon allegations that the customer’s assets were placed into exchange traded notes and exchange traded funds that were neither authorized through the firm nor suitable for the customer; the customer reportedly suffered from a lack of diversification.
Moreover, on July 1, 2016, a customer initiated investment related arbitration claim concerning McBride’s conduct was resolved for $290,000.00 in damages based upon allegations of the failure to supervise McBride’s activities, and mismanagement of the customer’s holdings pertaining to exchange traded funds. The customer also alleged that investment recommendations were improper. FINRA Arbitration No. 15-00502 (Mar. 4, 2015).
Then, on June 2, 2016, another customer initiated investment related arbitration claim regarding McBride’s improper conduct was settled for $100,000.00 in damages based upon allegations that between October of 2011 and December of 2014, the customer’s assets were allocated in common stocks, inverse-leveraged exchange traded notes, and precious metals exchange traded notes, all of which were unsuitable for the customer.
McBride was fired by Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. on August 1, 2014, based on allegations that he violated his company’s policies by soliciting securities transactions that were prohibited. Since August 11, 2014, he has been associated with Wunderlich Securities, Inc.
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