Outside FINRA building in New York. (Photo: Ron Pechtimaldjian/ALM)
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has sanctioned yet another former rep from Red Bank, New Jersey-based broker-dealer First Standard Financial, which is no longer operating as a FINRA-registered brokerage, according to the regulator.
This time, FINRA targeted Robert Frank Spiegel, who was registered with FINRA as a general securities representative through his association with First Standard from October 2014 through November 2018, according to the regulator.
Between October 2016 and December 2017, Spiegel "excessively … engaged in quantitatively unsuitable trading in the account of customer JM, a 70-year-old farmer," according to a FINRA letter of acceptance, waiver and consent that Spiegel signed Jan. 8. FINRA accepted the letter Friday.
Without admitting or denying the findings, Spiegel agreed to be suspended from association with any FINRA member firm, in all capacities, for four months. He also agreed to a fine of $5,000 and to provide restitution in the amount of $18,047, plus interest, to the wronged client, identified only as "JM" by FINRA in the letter.
However, Spiegel is no longer registered as a broker, according to FINRA. Timothy Feil, a partner at the New York law firm Carmel, Milazzo & DiChiara, who represented him in the FINRA case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
Spiegel "recommended all of the trading in JM's account, including executing a significant number of trades using margin, and JM followed his recommendations," according to FINRA. "As a result, Spiegel exercised de facto control over JM's account," the letter said, adding Spiegel's trading of JM's account "resulted in a high turnover rate and cost-to-equity ratio, as well as significant losses."
