Jul 7, 2017

Former Raymond James Broker Permanently Barred for Unauthorized and Unsuitable Account Transactions

Former Raymond James & Associates, Inc. (Raymond James) broker, Scott Sibley, has been barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for effecting precious metals purchases without his customers’ authorization, knowledge or consent.  Scott Allen Sibley, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, also allegedly made unsuitable recommendations to over-concentrate the accounts of at least 10 customers, all of whom were seniors with conservative investment objectives. According to FINRA, Scott Sibley effected over 900 securities purchases in a customer’s accounts without the customer’s knowledge or consent.  Further, Mr. Sibley caused this customer to carry a margin debit balance without authorization or consent.  FINRA also found that Mr. Sibley made unsuitable recommendations to over-concentrate customers’ accounts in precious metals to at least 10 customers, all of whom were seniors who relied on the money in their accounts to fund their retirements. 

Continue Reading

Feb 19, 2016

The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce P.A. Wins $1.45 Million Plus Interest Award Against UBS Financial Services and UBS Puerto Rico

In an arbitration proceeding against UBS Financial Services, Inc. (UBS) and UBS Financial Services, Inc. of Puerto Rico (UBS-PR), the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P. A. won a $1.45 million plus interest award for one of the firm’s clients this week. The case arose from a series of unsuitable investment recommendations made by a UBS and a UBS-PR financial advisor that our client purchase and hold an excessive concentration of UBS-PR closed-end bond funds in a leveraged UBS-PR account. Because of the financial advisors’ unsuitable recommendations, our client’s investment was not diversified from an asset allocation standpoint and also from a concentration standpoint, as the portfolio was overconcentrated in a single geographic area, namely, Puerto Rico.

Continue Reading