Enforcement Actions
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)
CASES OF NOTE
2011
NOTE: Stipulations of Fact and Consent to Penalty (SFC); Offers of Settlement (OS); and Letters of Acceptance Waiver, and Consent (AWC) are entered into by Respondents without admitting or denying the allegations, but consent is given to the described sanctions & to the entry of findings. Additionally, for AWCs, if FINRA has reason to believe a violation has occurred and the member or associated person does not dispute the violation, FINRA may prepare and request that the member or associated person execute a letter accepting a finding of violation, consenting to the imposition of sanctions, and agreeing to waive such member's or associated person's right to a hearing before a hearing panel, and any right of appeal to the National Adjudicatory Council, the SEC, and the courts, or to otherwise challenge the validity of the letter, if the letter is accepted. The letter shall describe the act or practice engaged in or omitted, the rule, regulation, or statutory provision violated, and the sanction or sanctions to be imposed.
December 2011
John Daniel Abbruzzese
AWC/2010021144501/December 2011
AWC/2010021144501/December 2011
Abbruzzese recommended that a customer purchase a variable annuity with the proceeds of his relative’s Individual Retirement Account (IRA). The customer had executed the application for a qualified annuity and shortly thereafter it was determined that the customer could not use the funds to purchase a qualified annuity.
Abbruzzese copied the customer’s signature, without his authorization, knowledge or consent, from an earlier letter, and pasted it on the variable annuity application to authorize the change from a qualified annuity to a non-qualified annuity.
Abbruzzese recommended that another customer purchase a variable annuity. The customer had entered into a reverse mortgage on her home and was referred to Abbruzzese to invest some of the proceeds to generate income for her retirement. Abbruzzese completed the variable annuity application and represented that the source of the funds was the sale of real estate, rather than a reverse mortgage, because his member firm did not permit brokers to recommend reverse mortgages. By including inaccurate information on the customer’s variable annuity application, Abbruzzese prevented the firm from maintaining accurate books and records and from assessingthe suitability of his recommendations to the customers.
Abbruzzese failed to timely respond to FINRA requests for information and documents untilhe appeared for on-the-record testimony.
John Daniel Abbruzzese: FIned $15,000; Suspended 18 months
Enforcement Actions
Tags
- Accredited Investor
- Affirmative Determination
- AML
- Annual Compliance Certification
- Annual Compliance Meeting
- Annuities
- Annuity
- Appeal
- ATM
- Away Accounts
- Bank
- Bankruptcy
- Banks
- Best Efforts Offering
- Blank Forms
- Borrowed
- Borrowing
- Broadcast
- Campaign Contributions
- CCO
- CDs
- Check
- Check Kiting
- Checks
- Churning
- CIP
- Clearing Agreement
- CMO
- Commissions
- Communications
- Computers
- Concentration
- Confidential Customer Information
- Contingency Offering
- Continuing Education
- Conversion
- Corporate Credit Card
- Correspondence
- Credit Cards
- Customer Protection Rule
- Debit Card
- Deceased
- Discretion
- Do Not Call
- Due Diligence
- EIA
- Elderly
- Electronic Communications
- Electronic Storage
- Embezzled
- Escrow
- Estate
- ETF
- Expenses
- Expulsion
- False Statements
- Felony
- Finder Fees
- FINOP
- FOCUS
- Foreign Language
- FOREX
- Forgery
- Form ADV
- Freely-Tradable
- Futures
- Gifts
- Guaranteeing Against Losses
- Hedge Fund
- Heightened Supervision
- Impersonation
- Insider Trading
- Inspections
- Installment Plan Contracts
- Instant Messaging
- Insurance
- Internet
- Investment Advisor
- IRA
- Joint Account
- Life Insurance
- LOA
- Loan
- Loaning
- Margin
- Mark-Up Mark-Down
- Material Change Of Business
- Membership Agreement
- Minimum Contingency
- Money Laundering
- Mortgage
- Mutual Funds
- NAC
- Net Capital
- NSF
- Options
- OSJ
- Outside Accounts
- Outside Business Activities
- Parking
- PIPE
- Ponzi
- Power Of Attorney
- Private Placement
- Private Securities Transaction
- Producing Manager
- Production Quota
- Promissory Notes
- Proprietary Traders
- Public Appearances
- Referral Fees
- Reg D
- Reg U
- Regulation 60
- Regulation S-P
- REIT
- Research
- Reverse Mortgage
- RIA
- Rule 8210
- SAR
- SBA
- Scripts
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- Signature
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- Suitability
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- Supervisory System
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- Testing
- Third Party Vendor
- Time And Price Discretion
- Trading
- Trading Limits
- Trading Volume
- Trust Account
- Trustee
- U.S. Treasuries
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- Unauthorized Transaction
- Universal Lease Programs
- Unregistered Person
- Unregistered Principal
- Unregistered RRs
- Unregistered Securities
- Unregistered Supervisor
- Variable Annuity
- Variable Insurance
- Viaticals
- Website
- Willfully
- WSP
- WSPs