LPL Financial Sales of Leveraged ETFs
Massachusetts regulators recently fined LPL $1.8 million for marketing and selling risky, leveraged ETFs to retail investors, as well as failing to properly supervising investors’ leveraged ETF investments. The leveraged ETFs, Pro Shares Ultra S&P 500 ETF and the Pro Shares Ultra Silver ETFs, are designed to be bought and held for only short periods of time, but many retail brokers do not understand leveraged ETFs and fail to inform their customers of the nature and risk of leveraged ETFs. Due to their risk and complexity, leveraged ETFs may be unsuitable for retail investors. As a result, many brokerage firms prohibit the sale of leveraged ETFs to retail investors. If you or anyone you know lost money in leveraged ETFs, contact a DKR investment fraud lawyer for a free consultation.
UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy Losses
National investor advocate law firm Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. (DKR) continues to pursue FINRA arbitration claims against UBS Financial Services, Inc. (UBS) on behalf of investors who lost money in the UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES) options strategy. UBS YES was inaccurately marketed as a low-risk options investment strategy to investors that has resulted in losses for many investors throughout the United States. As of this writing, YES investors have lost up to 33% since market volatility increased in December 2018 and continuing through March 2020. Total YES investor losses are expected be more than $1 billion. YES investors can file FINRA arbitration claims to recover their losses.
GPB Capital Holdings Causes Investor Losses
DKR is investigating a number of brokerage firms that recommended customers invest in GPB Capital Holdings’ high-risk, high-commission private placements. The investments, including two of GPB’s funds — GPB Automotive Portfolio and GPB Holdings II, have caused many investors to lose a significant amount of money after a series of events including the failure of GPB Capital Holdings to file required SEC reports in April 2018. Securities regulators have launched investigations into GPB Capital Holdings and brokerage firms’ sales of GPB’s private placements. GPB reportedly relied on numerous FINRA brokerage firms including Royal Alliance Associates, Sagepoint Financial and Woodbury Financial Services, to sell its funds. In exchange, the brokerages received high commissions. Investors who suffer losses from GPB Capital Holdings may have valid claims to recover those losses from the brokerage firms that sold the investments.
UBS Puerto Rico Bond Fund Losses
DKR represents more than 100 Puerto Rico residents who have lost a significant amount of money in UBS Puerto Rico closed-end bond funds. UBS PR recommended over-concentrated positions in the UBS PR funds and even recommended that some investors borrow money to buy these risky, leveraged funds or use the risky UBS PR funds as collateral for loans. Investors who suffered UBS Puerto Rico bond fund losses may be able to recover their losses through a FINRA arbitration proceeding. Please contact Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. attorney Jeffrey B. Kaplan at 888-578-6255.
Virtus AlphaSector Funds and F-Squared Investments
Investors in Virtus AlphaSector funds or any funds utilizing F-Squared Investment’s algorithm may have a claim to recover their investment losses. F-Squared agreed to pay $35 million to settle SEC claims that it defrauded investors and it admitted that it misled investors by claiming a successful seven-year track record for its strategy. In truth, its AlphaSector algorithm did not even exist during the prior seven years. Virtus and F-Squared-related funds were marketed and sold by many brokerage firms including, but not limited to: Ameriprise, AssetMark, Ausdal Financial Partners, LPL Financial, RBC Wealth Management, Raymond James, Charles Schwab, Stifel Nicolaus, UBS Financial Services, and Wells Fargo Advisors. These firms may not have performed sufficient due diligence of the Virtus or F-Squared products before recommending them to investors. If you lost money in a Virtus AlphaSector fund or F-Squared product contact an investment fraud lawyer at DKR to discuss your rights.
Puerto Rico Conservation Trust Fund and Other Puerto Rico Investment Losses
Puerto Rican residents who invested in Puerto Rico Conservation Trust Fund notes, Lehman Brothers “principal protection” notes, and RG Financial, Western Bank, and First Bank preferred shares may be able to recover their investment losses. Brokerage firms, such as UBS Financial Services, Inc. of Puerto Rico, Santander Securities, Popular Securities, and Oriental sold many of these securities as safe and secure investments. But the securities oftentimes were more risky than they were represented to be and the securities often comprised an unsuitably large concentration of investors’ brokerage accounts. Puerto Rican residents, including investors from Hato Rey, Bayamón, Ponce, San Juan, Isabela, Rincón, and Mayaguez, who lost money in these investments may be able to recover their losses through FINRA arbitration. To discuss the recovery of your investment losses, call a Spanish-speaking securities lawyer at Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. at 888-578-6255.
UBS Sales of V10 Enhanced FX Carry Strategy and Other Forex/Currency Transactions
DKR is investigating UBS Financial Services’ recommendations of currency and Forex products, including the UBS V10 Enhanced FX Carry Strategy. The V10 product was pitched to individual and institutional investors, including hedge funds and pension funds, as a high-yielding foreign-exchange investment that used computer algorithms to minimize the risk of losses in periods of volatility. The product has not performed as advertised, however, and investors have lost a significant amount of money. DKR is investigating whether UBS misled investors in the marketing and selling of the highly complex V10 product. DKR also is investigating UBS, Barclays, and other broker-dealers’ recommendations of foreign currency carry trade strategies. If you lost money in the UBS V10 product or in other foreign-currency transactions, including those involving the Swiss Franc or the Japanese Yen, Please contact Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. attorney Jeffrey B. Kaplan at 888-578-6255, (305) 374-1920, or jkaplan@dkrpa.com.
Deutsche Bank Sales of Glanmore Property Fund Limited
DKR represents a number of investors who lost money in the Glanmore Property Fund Limited, which Deutsche Bank recommended and sold the fund to wealthy investors in Mexico, Central America, and South America. Glanmore invested in United Kingdom commercial properties and was managed by Tilney, an investment management firm owned by Deutsche Bank. We believe that Deutsche Bank misrepresented the safety of Glanmore and provided inflated and inaccurate pricing information to investors. DKR is not pursuing claims against the individual brokers and advisors who sold Glanmore. Rather, DKR is pursuing claims against Deutsche Bank relating to the manner in which Deutsche Bank marketed Glanmore to investors. If you lost money in the Glanmore fund, we encourage you to contact Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A. for a free consultation about your rights and how DKR may be able to help you recover your investment losses. Our lawyers speak English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
