by Brian Mahany The title of this post, “A Tale Told By An Idiot, Full Of Sound And Fury, Signifying Nothing” is a quote by William Shakespeare. When it comes to SEC “enforcement” actions, the title is often appropriate. Without criminal sanctions and an admission of wrongdoing, most SEC actions simply look important while being […]
December 11th, A Date That Will Live In Infamy – Investment Fraud Blog Post
by Brian Mahany History buffs will remember President Roosevelt’s famous speech after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He started that speech by saying, “Yesterday, December 7th, 1941, a date that will in infamy…” He went on to inform a shocked nation about the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. A little more recently, December 11th has […]
"Do The Hustle" – Feds Slam Bank of America in Billion Dollar Fraud Case
by Brian Mahany For those who remember the disco era, Van McCoy scored a number 1 hit on the Billboard charts back in 1975 with a song called “Do The Hustle.” Decades later, federal prosecutors announced a billion dollar civil prosecution against America’s largest bank, Bank of America. Prosecutors say that BOA engaged in a […]
Securities Watchdog Issues List of Common Investment Scams
by Brian Mahany The North American Securities Administrators Association released their list of most common investment schemes this week. It’s good reading and a good reminder of things to watch out for. Many of the scams on this years list mirror events taking place in the economy. With gold and silver at record highs, many […]
Ponzi Scheme Defrauds Longshoreman's Union
by Brian Mahany A former investment adviser traded his pinstripes for prison stripes last week. Carlo Chiaese of New Jersey was sentenced to 58 months in prison for defrauding a tug boat workers union and other investors in the New York / New Jersey area. Chiaese solicited investors with promises of safe returns from conservative […]
Angry Investors!
by Brian Mahany Jason Zweig is one of my favorite columnists at the Wall Street Journal. Minutes ago I read his column in today’s WSJ, “Too Flustered to Trade: A Portrait of the Angry Investor.” Zweig’s premise is that as flustered and angry as individual investors are today, many are simply sitting on the sidelines […]
The Origins of Fraud
by Brian Mahany Unfortunately, there is a great deal of job security for asset recovery lawyers. Fraud has always been with us but in recent years, the size and number of frauds have reached all-time highs and with no end in sight. Just look at Bernie Madoff and the Ponzi schemes orchestrated in Washington D.C., […]
Stockbroker Conflicts of Interest Often Lead to Customer Losses
by Brian Mahany Stockbrokers do not have a fiduciary obligation to customers. At least not today. But they do have consider the best interests of their customers when making recommendations and they do have to make suitable recommendations. The line gets pretty fuzzy when stockbrokers have a conflict of interest – lining their pockets versus […]