Even in the wake of the “Bernie” Madoff scandal, investors continue to lose billions of dollars in Ponzi schemes. Stripped to its bare bones, a Ponzi scheme is a ploy where a promoter pays one set of investors with money raised from other investors. Ponzi promoters promise investors high returns but offer few details, except […]
FINRA CEO Expresses Concerns About Investment Products
Rick Ketchum, Chairman and CEO of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), recently spoke at the CCOutreach BD National Seminar. Ketchum addressed some specific product concerns: Over the last couple of years, FINRA has issued a number of Regulatory Notices related to products that have raised concerns for us from an investor protection standpoint. As […]
A Warning About Variable Annuities
Brokers love variable annuities, but most investors should view them as toxic investments. Variable annuities are basically mutual funds contained within a highly expensive insurance “wrapper.” They are attractive to brokers because they offer almost unbelievably high commission payouts which the client never sees, but pay through high annual expenses and large “surrender charges” which […]
John C. Porter, Jr. and Brian Smiley Recognized by Georgia Super Lawyers Magazine
John C. Porter, Jr. and Brian Smiley have been named by Georgia Super Lawyers magazine as two of the top attorneys in Georgia for 2011. Only 5% of the lawyers in the state are named by Super Lawyers. The selections for this esteemed list are made by the research team at Super Lawyers, which is […]
Equity Indexed Annuities
Here’s a proposition: Fearful investors provide a ready market for products that sound safe, but aren’t. Exhibit A in support of that proposition? The Equity Indexed Annuity, or EIA. An EIA is an annuity, meaning it’s a contract to pay a guaranteed minimum interest rate, which is then goosed up by aligning the rate it […]
Brian Smiley Reelected to the PIABA Board of Directors
Brian Smiley was reelected to the Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association. This was for his third two-year term. During the organization’s annual meeting in Ponte Vedra Beach Florida, Brian conducted a members only session on brokerage firm defense tactics.
Can the SEC Beat Goldman Sachs?
Smiley Bishop & Porter LLP quoted in U.S. News & World Report on SEC’s suit against Goldman Sach’s. News that the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil suit against Goldman Sachs has sent the investment bank’s stocks reeling. But are investors overreacting?
FINRA Blames Morgan Keegan, Not Brokers, For Hiding Risk
Dow Jones quotes Brian Smiley on securities regulators’ charges against Morgan Keegan. Securities regulators’ actions against Morgan Keegan & Co. put its brokers in the same basic category as investors: duped.
Arbitrator Out of Work? Call FINRA
Wall Street Journal cites Brian Smiley on FINRA’s efforts to recruit arbitrators to handle Morgan Keegan claims. Wall Street needs an army of arbitrators to clean up the mess left by the headline-grabbing collapse of three mutual funds stuffed with collateralized debt obligations and other subprime-related securities.
Investors Win More Broker Cases
Brian Smiley addresses the recent flood of claims against brokers. Investors pummeled by last year’s market meltdown are increasingly taking their brokers to task.
