UBS Group AG’s wealth management business must pay a combined $750,000 to three investors who claimed damages tied to their investments in Puerto Rico’s debt, according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. 

According to a FINRA document , the arbitration award will go to Jose A. Rivera Riera, Desarrollos Jarra SE and Jenny Robles Adomo, who claimed fraud, recklessness and negligence relating to their investments in Puerto Rico bonds and closed-end funds. The damages include commissions they paid the brokerage firm as well as damages to their portfolios.

This is not the first time this year that UBS must pay investors for alleged negligence relating to Puerto Rico’s debt crisis. In March, a FINRA arbitration panel decided the brokerage firm must pay $470,000 to three investors who claimed damages because their accounts were over-concentrated in Puerto Rico bonds that dropped drastically in value.

In the latest case, Mr. Rivera, Mr. Jarra and Mr. Robles initially claimed about $2.5 million of compensatory damages, $18 million in punitive damages, plus the reimbursement of unlawful commissions, according to reports.

According to a spokesman for UBS,  the firm disagreed with the decision.

The White Law Group continues to investigate the liability that brokerage firms may have for recommending high-risk, speculative bets in Puerto Rican debt.

For more information on Puerto Rico bonds defaulting, click here.

Brokerage firms are required to perform adequate due diligence on any investment they recommend and to ensure that all investments recommended are suitable 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 recommends and investment that is unsuitable, the firm can be held responsible for losses in a FINRA arbitration claim.

The White Law Group is not only looking in to claims involving U.S. based municipal bond funds with Puerto Rico exposure, but also direct bets in Puerto Rico bonds.

If you suffered losses investing in a U.S. based municipal bond fund or a direct investment in a Puerto Rico municipal bond and would like to know your litigation options, please call The White Law Group’s Chicago office at 888.637.5510 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 White Law Group, visit http://whitesecuritieslaw.com.