According to a FINRA disciplinary action announcement, James Joseph Bracey IV (CRD #2921386, Martinsville, New Jersey) recently submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he was barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity.

Without admitting or denying the findings, Bracey consented to the sanction and to the entry of findings that he received a $175,000 loan from a customer of his member firm without notifying or obtaining the firm’s prior approval. The findings stated that the loan was in connection with one of Bracey’s unapproved outside business activities. On multiple occasions thereafter, Bracey renegotiated the interest payments on the customer’s loan without notifying or obtaining his firm’s prior approval. Bracey falsified the customer’s written wire transfer instructions in order to execute an unauthorized transfer of funds from the customer’s brokerage account to the customer’s personal bank account outside of the firm. Bracey’s falsification of the wire transfer form caused his firm to create and maintain inaccurate books and records evidencing a transfer of funds. The findings also stated that Bracey failed to timely notify his member firms of his outside business activities and never updated his Form U4 to reflect his activities with a company he helped form.

The findings also included that Bracey formed a company for the sole purpose of investing securities of a particular third-party issuer. Bracey solicited investors, including some customers from his firm, to invest and collectively purchase a block of series A shares from that third-party issuer in the amount of $103,200. On a firm Annual Questionnaire, Bracey falsely responded in the negative with respect to whether he had engaged in any private securities transactions. Bracey failed to provide written notice to, and failed to obtain written approval from, his firm to engage in the private securities transaction. FINRA found that Bracey willfully failed to timely disclose material information to either of his firms, and failed to update his Form U4 to reflect compromises with creditors and liens.

For the full findings, see FINRA Case #2011026425501.

According to his FINRA Broker Report, Bracey was registered with Multi-Financial Services Corporation from January 2004 through December 2010 and LPL Financial from December 2010 through April 2013.

The foregoing information, which is all publicly available on FINRA’s website, is being provided by The White Law Group.

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