BancWest - Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce

May 22, 2017

BancWest Broker Named in FINRA Complaint Alleging Unauthorized Trades

Corinne Renae Mittag, of Omaha, Nebraska, was named a Respondent in a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) complaint alleging that she executed numerous unauthorized trades in a customer’s account while employed with BancWest Investment Services, Inc. (BancWest). According to FINRA’s complaint, an imposter posing as a customer sent emails to Ms. Mittag requesting that she sell securities in order to fund a wire request to a third party. Ms. Mittag allegedly executed the sale of six corporate bond positions and one mutual fund position based upon the imposter’s email. FINRA alleges that at no time prior to submitting the trades did Ms. Mittag contact or attempt to contact the customer by phone, as was required. The complaint further alleges that Ms. Mittag falsely represented to BancWest that she had spoken with the customer by phone in order to process the trades.

Feb 10, 2017

BancWest Broker Barred by FINRA for Unapproved REIT Transactions

John Hudnall, a former broker with BancWest Investment Services, Inc. (BancWest), submitted an Offer of Settlement to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in which he was barred from the securities industry amid findings that he recommended and sold a REIT investment to an 80 year old customer, which he split into two transactions in order to circumvent his firm’s supervisory review. FINRA found that John Stuart Hudnall, of Pacifica, California, sold a $400,000 Wells Core Office Income REIT investment to an 80 year old customer. He then split it into two transactions, one of 40,000 and the other of $360,000, to avoid supervisory review of such a large transaction. Mr. Hudnall only submitted the $40,000 portion to his firm, and submitted the $360,000 portion directly to the REIT sponsor. Mr. Hudnall allegedly received a gross commission of $25,200 in connection with the $360,000 part of the REIT investment.