E*Trade failed to adequately prepare for, and respond to, its acquisition of another member firm and, prior to the conversion, it identified approximately 88,000 converting customers whose login information was likely to be incompatible with the firm’s systems. The Firm communicated with those customers and provided them with temporary login IDs and instructions, but an additional number of conversion customers who the firm had not initially identified also had login information that was incompatible with the firm’s systems. The login problem led to higher-than-expected call volumes, which the firm was not equipped to handle, and the problem was not completely resolved for several months and the conversion customers continued to inquire about their passwords and access to their accounts. The Firm had over 17,000 unanswered emails from converting customers regarding conversion issues.
The Firm disclosed that a technological problem had prevented it from transmitting customer orders to various market centers on a particular day and, as a result, the firm’s customers were unable to enter orders online or log on to the firm’s website. The Firm's website experienced sporadic slowness and continued delays because requests had accumulated in excess of what the systems were normally able to process. In addition, the Firm failed to establish a system reasonably designed to supervise, and written procedures reasonably designed to ensure, customers’ ability to log in to their accounts and contact customer service for assistance, ensure customers’ ability to enter orders online on one particular day and to timely enter orders online.