FINRA Orders Morgan Stanley to Pay $697,897 Over Failure to Supervise Nine Advisors

Posted on December 8th, 2022 at 2:48 PM
FINRA Orders Morgan Stanley to Pay $697,897 Over Failure to Supervise Nine Advisors

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has ordered Morgan Stanley to pay $697,897, including a $200,000 fine and $497,897 in restitution, for failing to adhere to its own procedures for supervising its advisors’ high-risk recommendations.

Morgan Stanley failed to “reasonably supervise” nine advisors who made hundreds of potentially problematic recommendations to investors with a moderate or conservative risk tolerance between January 2014 and December 2018, according to FINRA. According to the settlement, the investments ranged from master limited partnerships in the energy sector to early-stage pharmaceutical companies, and one investment in a Chinese telecommunication company resulted in eight investors collectively losing $1.6 million.

Morgan Stanley’s procedures required advisors to submit a “Plan of Solicitation” explaining their recommendations if they were pitching an investment not listed on the S&P 500 Index, not covered by Morgan Stanley Research, and not rated three stars or better by an independent third-party research service, according to FINRA. However, “The firm did not evaluate whether the recommendations were consistent with the customers’ investment profiles”, FINRA said. Morgan Stanley agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying any of FINRA’s investigatory findings.

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities,
employment, regulatory and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, advisors, law, finra

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

Jim, Stephany and the whole team were a God send.  We felt like we were put into a situation where we had no advocate. Jim’s team came in with a strong, well laid out strategy on how to get our story heard. Where our outside compliance company had no ability to help, our Broker Dealer was impenitent, and the regulators were aggressive pursuing vague rules, Jim came like a barricade against an assault we did not understand. Though you pay member dues to be affiliated with FINRA and a B/D, you have no voice. The only thing that is truly heard in this un-level playing field is a bulldog’s bark like Jim’s. I would encourage anyone to call Jim and his team to find a real ally in the tough and complicated world of securities regulation. They are truly the best.

Greg P.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

December 2, 2025
Crypto's Leverage Shakeout Exposes Structural Risks

The crypto market’s recent downturn erased nearly $20 billion in leveraged positions within hours and half a trillion dollars in market value over a single weekend.

December 1, 2025
UBS Winds Down Funds as First Brands Bankruptcy Ripples Through Global Markets

UBS Group AG has begun liquidating two invoice finance funds with direct exposure to First Brands Group, marking one of the earliest moves by a major financial institution to contain the fallout from the bankrupt auto-parts supplier’s collapse, as reported by Bloomberg Law.

November 26, 2025
Former GWG Chair Charged in Alleged $150 Million Fraud Scheme as Investor Losses Mount

Federal prosecutors have intensified scrutiny of the long-running collapse of GWG Holdings Inc., unveiling criminal charges against Bradley Heppner, the former chair of both GWG and Beneficient.