Valence Montgomery Williams, of New York, New York, a stockbroker registered with J.H. Darbie Co. Inc., has been fined $10,000.00 and suspended for five months from associating with any Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member in any capacity because Williams engaged in unauthorized trading and mismarking of trade records. Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent No. 2021072193101 (March 14, 2024).
According to the AWC, between January of 2019 and July of 2021, Williams executed 443 trades in four customer accounts without obtaining the necessary prior written authorization from the customers and without his firm, J.H. Darbie Co. Inc., accepting these accounts as discretionary. This was a violation of NASD Rule 2510(b) and FINRA Rule 3260(b), which require that discretion must be approved in writing both by the customer and the brokerage firm.
In addition to unauthorized trading, FINRA stated that Williams was also involved in mismarking at least 367 trades as unsolicited when they were, in fact, solicited. According to the AWC, this misrepresentation led to the maintenance of inaccurate books and records by JH Darbie. Therefore, Williams violated FINRA Rules 2010 and 4511, which require accurate record-keeping by securities broker dealers.
Williams was associated with Aegis Capital Corp. in New York, New York from March 23, 2010, to July 18, 2018. Williams was associated with J.H. Darbie Co. Inc. in New York, New York from July 17, 2018, to December 19, 2023.
