FINRA Suspends Former Merrill Advisor Who Managed $2 Billion Florida Team

Posted on June 21st, 2022 at 1:08 PM
FINRA Suspends Former Merrill Advisor Who Managed $2 Billion Florida Team

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston of Eccleston Law:

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has issued a six-week suspension and a $5,000 fine to a former Merrill Lynch advisor who previously had helped to establish a $2 billion team. 

The former Merrill advisor, Jorge Sonville, allegedly loaned a client $65,000 in February 2018 without properly disclosing the transaction to the firm, according to FINRA. FINRA rules prohibits advisors from lending funds to clients without obtaining written consent from their firm in an effort to avoid potential client conflicts. In 2018, Sonville additionally submitted a compliance questionnaire to the firm in which he falsely attested that he had not loaned funds to any clients, according to FINRA. Merrill terminated Sonville in June 2021 for “conduct including participation in a financial arrangement with a client and failure to disclose an outside business activity,” according to BrokerCheck. Sonville since has joined Insigneo Securities, which is based in Miami, Florida. 

FINRA initiated its investigation after Merrill notified the regulator about a pending lawsuit filed against the firm. The suit, filed by Eduardo Tarajano, alleged Merrill of failing to supervise Sonville. The complaint further alleged that Sonville convinced Tarajano and his spouse to invest $5 million in a Key Biscayne, Florida liquor store in 2015, which ultimately sold for $585,000, a substantial loss, in 2020. According to the complaint, Sonville or his spouse possessed an undisclosed interest in the liquor store, which enabled Sonville to collect at least $70,000 in payments. 

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

 
 

Tags: eccleston law, merril lynch, finra

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