Tr?id=566623520170033&ev=PageView&noscript=1

FINRA's Year-End Enforcement Blitz: LPL Financial and Interactive Brokers Face Major Penalties

Posted on March 19th, 2024 at 2:55 PM
FINRA's Year-End Enforcement Blitz: LPL Financial and Interactive Brokers Face Major Penalties

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. (FINRA) concluded the year with significant penalties against two major firms, LPL Financial and Interactive Brokers.

InvestmentNews reports that LPL Financial settled with FINRA on December 27, agreeing to a $6.15 million settlement concerning its inadequate supervision of thousands of transactions conducted by financial advisors and brokers from 2012 to 2019 with product sponsors, termed as "direct" business in the industry. LPL agreed to pay a $5.5 million fine and $651,000 in restitution to clients without admitting or denying FINRA's findings.

Similarly, Interactive Brokers, specializing in equities and options trading, reached a $3.5 million settlement with FINRA on December 22 for failing to meet best execution and supervision standards from 2014 to 2021.

InvestmentNews opines that FINRA's end-of-year enforcement actions are not uncommon, often driven by the firms involved. In LPL's case, FINRA highlighted the firm's failure to ensure the reporting of direct transactions and supervision lapses in various areas, including inaccuracies in client communications regarding security switching charges and recommendations of traded business development companies from 2017 to 2022. Those settlements underscore FINRA's commitment to enforcing compliance and protecting investors within the securities industry.

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

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, finra

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next
Quotes Bigger

Fantastic news!!!!  Your professionalism, support and expertise were greatly appreciated.  You made a difficult situation much more bearable.

Marci M.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

1780676353 Law
June 5, 2026
Redemption Pressure Mounts Across Private Credit and Non-Traded BDC Market

Investors continued pulling money from private credit and nontraded business development companies ("BDCs") during the first quarter of 2026 as concerns about liquidity and portfolio valuations intensified across the sector, according to reporting by InvestmentNews.

1780588152 Law
June 4, 2026
Former Wells Advisor Alleges Age Discrimination

A former Wells Fargo senior private client financial advisor in Wisconsin has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the firm terminated him because of his age rather than an alleged workplace profanity incident.

1780507151 Law
June 3, 2026
Starwood REIT Suspends Most Redemptions Amid Liquidity Pressure

Starwood Real Estate Income Trust (SREIT) has announced a temporary suspension of its share repurchase program for most investors.