Six Independent Broker Dealers Fined by FINRA for Failing to Give REIT Discounts to Investors
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) fined six independent broker dealers for failing to give their clients the proper discounts available to them, known as breakpoint discounts, on large sales of certain nontraded REITs. The six firms are Voya Financial Advisors Inc. (Voya), Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. (Transamerica), Investacorp Inc. (Investacorp), J.P. Turner & Co. (J.P. Turner), National Planning Corp. (National Planning), and Cetera Investment Services (Cetera). The fines were levied in July and August and total more than $500,000. Voya and Transamerica were fined the largest amounts: $325,000 for Voya and $85,000 for Transamerica. The other fines levied against Investacorp, J.P. Turner, National Planning, and Cetera were: $50,000, $45,000, $30,000, and $30,000, respectively. All six firms were also ordered to pay restitution.
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