The investment fraud lawyers at Rich, Intelisano & Katz (“RIK”) won $3.2 million for their clients, Bret and Marion Pearlman, in a recent FINRA arbitration against UBS.  The Pearlmans’ claim was for misrepresentations and omissions related to UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES) – an options overlay strategy.  It is the third largest award against UBS related to YES.  Investors have tried to a final award approximately 46 YES cases against UBS and have won roughly one-half of those cases.  RIK has tried only two cases to a final award and won the largest award ($5.2 m ..read more

In recent years, options trading has become more popular with investors.  Because of the high risks associated with options trading, FINRA imposes specific rules and guidelines relating to trading options and which accounts can be approved for options trading.  For example, firms are required to have an options principal oversee option trading in accounts.  Moreover, in April 2021, FINRA sent a notice to members reminding them that, “[r]egardless of whether the account is self-directed or options are being recommended, members must perform due diligence on the customer and colle ..read more

Yes, many investors have filed claims to recover losses sustained as a result of their investments in NYC REIT, a real estate investment trust that purports to own “a portfolio of high-quality” commercial real estate located within the five boroughs of New York City.  This REIT began as a non-traded REIT, meaning it was not traded on an open exchange, making it is highly illiquid.  Not only was it difficult for investors to get out of their positions, share prices have dropped substantially since its initial private stock offering.  Investors were led to believe returns on the i ..read more

HJ Sims & Co. Inc. (“HJ Sims”) appears to have used Regulation D (“Reg D”) offerings to pass its risk of loss onto its customers while it retained the potential for significant gains.  A scheme like this would violate numerous FINRA Rules and regulations, including suitability, Regulation BI (“Reg BI”), and due diligence obligations.  See FINRA’s Due Diligence and Suitability of Private Placement.  RIK’s investment lawyers are currently investigating potential claims related to HJ Sims’ possible improper sales practices. Reg D securities are non-public offerings designed to ..read more

The investment fraud attorneys at Rich, Intelisano & Katz won a $5.2 million FINRA arbitration award for their clients, George and Sandra Schussel, in a case relating to UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”).  Investors in YES, including the Schussels, suffered significant losses in December 2018.  Many investors in YES have since filed FINRA claims against UBS.  To date, over 40 of the filed claims have gone to award – approximately half have been in favor of investors while half favored UBS.  RIK has been successful in representing multiple YES investors.  The ..read more

Annuities are insurance contracts that make routine payments to customers either immediately or at some point in the future.  This insurance contract allows investors to protect and grow their retirement savings while providing them with guaranteed income.  Some brokers and financial advisors recommend selling or exchanging annuities for “better” investment opportunities.  However, liquidating or exchanging an annuity comes with a high price– commissions, tax implications, and the loss of benefits associated with the original annuity.  For these reasons, liquidating or exch ..read more

Many investors of UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”), if not all, would never have invested in YES if UBS made full and fair disclosures related to its risks.  YES was marketed as an overlay strategy for additional incremental investment income.  Put simply, UBS advertised YES as an “iron condor” strategy that used customers’ investment accounts as collateral for options trading.  Customers that enrolled in the strategy were required to sign disclosure documents, including margin agreements and options forms.  Despite these disclosure documents, UBS never adequately d ..read more

Hundreds of investors have been duped by UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES).  In its marketing materials, UBS told investors that its YES strategy was an Iron Condor, a generally low risk options “overlay” strategy designed to generate incremental income on top of that generated from a customer’s other investment assets.  Losses from such a strategy are supposed to be strictly defined and limited. However, UBS’s YES strategy was not the low risk Iron Condor strategy described to its customers by UBS financial advisors and in UBS marketing materials.  In fact, the way UBS imp ..read more

Investors lost millions in UBS’s high-risk Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”).  Despite UBS’s claims that this was a low-risk strategy and that losses were protected by hedging put and call options, investors had substantial losses when the S&P dropped in 2018 and 2019.  Even with these losses, UBS brokers continued to push this strategy onto investors.  Because of market volatility in early 2020, losses ensued further, causing investors to lose millions.  RIK’s investment fraud lawyers represent several claimants in multimillion-dollar FINRA arbitrations against UBS on ..read more

Although some registered representatives and financial firms downplay the risks involved with options trading, in reality, options trading can be an aggressive strategy that may entail high risks.  Because of the risks associated with option trading, it is generally only suitable for investors with a high net worth, experience, and an appetite for risk.  Brokers, financial advisors, and financial firms sometimes ignore a customer’s tolerance for risk and improperly approve options trading in the customer’s account.  Unfortunately, this can lead to tremendous losses in their acco ..read more