Have you suffered losses investing in a structured note tied to oil?  If so, the securities attorneys of The White Law Group may be able to help you recover your losses through a FINRA arbitration claim against the brokerage firm that recommended the investment.

According to a Bloomberg Report, the recent decline in oil prices has crushed retail structured notes meant to protect against a drop in crude. Reportedly, of the $437.1 million that have matured so far this year, 44 percent, or $194.3 million of principal, has evaporated.

Banks create structured notes, like structured notes tied to oil, by packaging debt with derivatives to offer customized bets to retail investors while earning fees and raising money. These products typically pay a high fee to the financial advisors that sell them.  They are also extremely complex and difficult for investors (and sometimes even the financial advisors) to understand.

In or about August, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission issues a risk alert which discussed structured products.  The SEC’s alert stated that it had analyzed 26,600 structured product transactions totaling $1.25 billion, and found a significant number of instances in which the investments were unsuitable for the purchasers’ investment objectives and needs.. The SEC also found that brokerage firms’ supervision of sales of structured products and their supervisory procedures were weak and insufficient.

The White Law Group is investigating the liability that brokerage firms may have for recommending certain structured notes tied to oil, including structured notes tied to oil offered by Barclays (NYSE:BCS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB), UBS (NYSE:BNP PARIBAS), Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America Merrill Lynch (NYSE:BAC), JPMorgan Chase(NYSE:JPM), Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS), and BNP Paribas.

Brokers often pitch structured products as providing “downside protection” against losses to a related index while allowing modest up side gain potential. However, investors in structured notes tied to oil are finding out that the protection offered was limited and insufficient to ward off enormous losses.

Moreover, brokerage firms are required to perform adequate due diligence on any product they recommend and to ensure that all recommendations are suitable for their client in light of the client’s age, investment experience, net worth, income, and investment objectives.

If a brokerage firm fails to perform adequate due diligence or makes an unsuitable investment recommendation, the firm can be held responsible in a FINRA arbitration claim.

If you suffered losses investing in a structured note tied to oil and would like to discuss your litigation options, please call The White Law Group at 312/238-9650 for a free consultation.

The White Law Group, LLC is a national securities fraud, securities arbitration, investor protection, and securities regulation/compliance law firm with offices in Chicago, Illinois and Franklin, Tennessee.  For more information on the firm and its representation of investors in FINRA arbitration claims, visit http://whitesecuritieslaw.com.