FINRA Bars Ronald Burton Smith, PTS Brokerage Advisor, from the Securities Industry

According to public records, FINRA, the self-regulator who oversees brokers and brokerage firms, has reportedly barred Ronald Burton Smith (CRD #2483733) from the securities industry as of September 21, 2023.  

Smith was reportedly barred after he refused to produce information and documents requested by FINRA in connection with its investigation. The self-regulator was reportedly investigating allegations in a statement of claim against Smith by one of his former customers. The findings stated that FINRA sent a request to Smith to produce information and documents, including bank and brokerage account statements. Although Smith produced some information in response to that request, he allegedly failed to produce other information, including numerous monthly statements and refused to produce anything further. 

According to his FINRA broker report, Smith’s customer filed a complaint against him in in December 2022, alleging that “certain trade instructions were not followed; that he misrepresented account positions; and that he omitted to advise of margin balance and existence of short option positions.” The damage amount requested is $2 million. 

FINRA BrokerCheck Report – Ronald Burton Smith 

According to his FINRA BrokerCheck report, Smith was registered with the following firms, among others, during his career:

08/25/2004 – 01/03/2023, PTS BROKERAGE, LLC (CRD#:119307), BORDENTOWN, NJ,
B, 12/20/2000 – 09/10/2004, USALLIANZ SECURITIES, INC. (CRD#:40875), MINNEAPOLIS, MN 

Smith reportedly has 9 disclosures on his broker report including 3 regulatory actions, 3 judgments, 1 employment separation, and two customer complaints. 

The FINRA BrokerCheck tool is a free online tool that allows investors to research and verify the background and credentials of financial brokers, brokerage firms, and investment advisors registered with FINRA.    

FINRA BrokerCheck provides investors with detailed information about the professional history, qualifications, and regulatory actions of brokers and brokerage firms. Investors can use the tool to verify whether a broker or brokerage firm is registered with FINRA, as well as to review their employment history, licensing status, and any regulatory actions or complaints filed against them.    

Broker Due Diligence 

Broker due diligence ensures that your advisor is recommending and selling investment products that are appropriate for you. The purpose of this process is to protect the interests of the brokerage firm and its clients by ensuring that the investments being offered are suitable for the client’s investment objectives, risk tolerance, and financial situation.   In fact, brokerage firms and financial advisors have a fiduciary duty to their clients to perform adequate due diligence on any investment prior to offering it for sale to its clients.   

If you have suffered losses investing with Ronald Burton Smith, the securities attorneys at the White Law Group may be able to help you. For a free consultation with a securities attorney, please call (888) 637-5510.

The White Law Group, LLC is a national securities fraud, securities arbitration, investor protection, and securities regulation/compliance law firm dedicated to helping investors in claims in all 50 states against their financial professional or brokerage firm. Since the firm launched in 2010, it has handled over 700 FINRA arbitration cases.      

Our firm represents investors in all types of securities related claims, including claims involving stock fraud, broker misrepresentation, churning, unsuitable investments, selling away, and unauthorized trading, among many others.       

With over 30 years of securities law experience, The White Law Group has the expertise to help investors to recover their fraud losses.    For more information, please visit our website, www.whitesecuritieslaw.com.       

Ronald Burton Smith, broker investigation, PTS Brokerage