Wilson-Davis & Co., Inc. fined by FINRA

Wilson-Davis & Co., Inc. (CRD #3777, Salt Lake City, Utah) recently submitted an Offer of Settlement in which the firm was censured, fined $75,269, $35,269 of which represents disgorgement of the firm’s profits, and required to certify to FINRA, within 30 days, that it has reviewed its policies, systems and procedures for the liquidation of securities delivered in certificate or electronic form, and has determined that they are reasonably designed to achieve compliance with FINRA rules and federal securities laws and provide FINRA with a written description of these policies, systems and procedures.

Without admitting or denying the allegations, the firm consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of findings that the firm failed to take steps necessary to determine whether the shares of an SEC-reporting company could be sold without violating Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act); the firm knew, or should have known, information regarding the issuer and its securities, which required that they conduct further inquiry to determine whether the securities sold were registered or going to be sold in transactions exempt from the registration requirements of Section 5 of the Securities Act.

The findings stated that the firm was in possession of information regarding the activity at the firm from various sources, including stock certificates, account information and documents in its possession, as well as from sell orders and wire and transfer instructions that should have alerted them that the sales of the company shares through the firm may have been part of an illegal unregistered distribution.

Finally, the FINRA findings stated that the firm failed to perform an adequate inquiry into the registration or exemption status of the unregistered shares deposited into and sold from firm accounts.

This information which is publicly available on FINRA’s website has been provided by The White Law Group, LLC.

If you have questions about investments you made with Wilson-Davis & Co., Inc., the securities attorneys of The White Law Group may be able to help.  To speak with a securities attorney, please call the firm’s Chicago office at 312/238-9650.

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 Boca Raton, Florida.

For more information on The White Law Group, please visit our website at http://whitesecuritieslaw.com.