Spartan Capital Broker Sean Barakat Allegedly Excessively Traded Accounts

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) on September 9, 2024, the self-regulator has reportedly filed a complaint against financial advisor Sean Barakat (also known as Shadi Barakat)(CRD#: 5031281).

Barakat reportedly refused to appear for on-the-record testimony requested by FINRA in connection with its investigation into whether he engaged in churning and excessive trading in his customers’ accounts. The complaint alleges that Barakat’s refusal to appear for testimony impeded FINRA’s investigation into his potential misconduct.

On October 15, 2022, Spartan reportedly filed a Uniform Termination Notice for Securities Industry Registration disclosing that the firm had discharged Barakat because of his “failure to follow Firm Policies and procedures.”

Churning and Excessive Trading

Churning occurs when a broker makes an excessive number of trades within a client’s account, primarily for the purpose of generating commissions or fees for themselves.
These trades are typically unnecessary and serve no legitimate investment purpose. Instead, they are intended to generate income for the broker, often at the expense of the client. Churning can be costly due to transaction costs and capital losses due to the frequent trading.

Excessive trading and churning violate securities laws and regulations because it breaches the fiduciary duty that brokers and advisors owe to their clients. They are expected to act in the best interests of the client and not engage in trading solely to benefit themselves.

FINRA BrokerCheck – Sean Barakat

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.

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.

Sean Barakat reportedly has five customer complaints on his record for allegations of Churning, Unsuitable Investments, Negligent Misrepresentation, Breach of Fiduciary Duty, Failure to Supervise, among others. He was reportedly registered with the following brokerage firms during his career in the securities industry, among others:

10/21/2022 – 10/24/2022 ALEXANDER CAPITAL, L.P. (CRD#:40077) RED BANK, NJ
05/01/2017 – 10/15/2022 SPARTAN CAPITAL SECURITIES, LLC (CRD#:146251)
NEW YORK, NY
03/23/2010 – 05/01/2017 AEGIS CAPITAL CORP. (CRD#:15007) NEW YORK, NY

Free Consultation with National Securities Attorneys  

If you have suffered investment losses with Sean Barakat and Spartan Capital, 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.

About the White Law Group

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 securities fraud losses.