FINRA Charges Morgan Stanley With Supervisory Malfeasance In Clients' Retirement Plans

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has fined Morgan Stanley & Co. $3 million and ordered it to pay more than $4.2 million in restitution to 90 Rochester, NY area retirees to resolve charges that its supervisory system failed to

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The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has fined Morgan Stanley & Co. $3 million and ordered it to pay more than $4.2 million in restitution to 90 Rochester, NY-area retirees to resolve charges that its supervisory system failed to detect and prevent brokers from persuading Eastman Kodak Company and Xerox Corporation employees to take early retirement based upon unrealistic promises of consistently high investment returns and by espousing unsuitable investment strategies.

FINRA found that Morgan Stanley failed to reasonably supervise the activities of Michael J. Kazacos and David M. Isabella, two former registered representatives in its Rochester branch office. FINRA has permanently barred Kazacos from the securities industry for committing numerous violations of FINRA rules in connection with his solicitation and handling of IRA rollover/retirement accounts, such as making unrealistic predictions that customers would earn investment returns of 10% each year.

In a formal disciplinary complaint FINRA charged Isabella with having engaged in similar misconduct. The matter will be adjudicated before a three-member FINRA Hearing Panel. FINRA also found that Ira S. Miller, the manager of Morgan Stanley’s Rochester branch, failed to reasonably supervise both representatives. Miller was fined $50,000, suspended from acting in a principal capacity for one year and ordered to re-qualify as a principal before serving in such capacity in the future.

FINRA found that as a result of the misconduct at least 184 customers suffered financial hardships, including market losses, a reduction in principal and the inability to sustain expected withdrawal rates. In many cases, the customer’s initial investment was eroded by market declines and the customer’s monthly withdrawals were not funded by income but were really distributions of principal. Some customers were forced to return to work at a greatly reduced income in order to meet their basic living expenses.

FINRA has ordered Morgan Stanley to pay restitution to 90 former customers of Kazacos or Isabella who sustained losses. The firm has previously settled with 101 other customers of those brokers. FINRA found that Morgan Stanley failed to enforce a reasonable supervisory system to ensure that Kazacos and Isabella provided customers with appropriate risk disclosures concerning their retirement accounts.

During the relevant time period, Kazacos and Isabella generated approximately $15.4 million in gross commissions. The firm knew or should have known that these representatives were actively marketing their early retirement programs to retirees and potential retirees.

Nevertheless, the firm failed to take reasonable steps to ensure, among other things, that customers received proper risk disclosures and that Kazacos and Isabella did not promise or promote unrealistic investment returns. FINRA further found that Morgan Stanley also failed to ensure that the securities and accounts that those representatives recommended for the retirees, such as variable annuities and fee-based managed accounts, were properly reviewed for suitability and other concerns.

“Protecting investors who have retired or are considering retirement has been one of FINRA’s top priorities,” says Susan L. Merrill, executive vice president and chief of Enforcement.

“Brokerage firms and brokers who serve investors considering retirement must ensure that their customers are given suitable investment recommendations based upon reasonable assumptions of market performance and are given thorough disclosure of investment risks. The supervisory failures of Morgan Stanley and its management led to losses suffered by customers at a vulnerable time in their lives retirement which could have been avoided.”

L.D.

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