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

Market Volatility Sparks Heightened Scrutiny of Complex Products Sales

Posted on June 13th, 2022 at 1:07 PM
Market Volatility Sparks Heightened Scrutiny of Complex Products Sales

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law:

Market volatility can expose financial advisory firms that fail to supervise and ensure their advisors adhere to Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) rules when they recommend complex products, according to FINRA.

Although structured products have grown in popularity, heightened market volatility applies pressure to some structured retail products, according to Jessica Hopper, head of enforcement at FINRA. Hopper did not pinpoint any specific complex products, but recent FINRA regulatory notices have implicated volatility-linked exchange-traded products, interest rate-based “steepener notes”, defined outcome exchange-traded funds, and mutual funds and ETFs using cryptocurrency-based strategies. While the complex products may appear to be another mutual fund, advisors must make themselves aware of the options-based strategies underlying many of the investments, according to Hopper. 

In one recent enforcement example, FINRA issued a $150,000 fine against Geneos Wealth Management in March. Between November 2016 and February 2018, Geneos “failed to reasonably supervise representatives’ recommendations of an alternative mutual fund” and establish “procedures reasonably designed to ensure that the firm and its representatives had a sufficient understanding” of the risks related to the fund they were recommending, which primarily relied on purchasing uncovered options, according to FINRA. One of the Geneos advisors responsible for selling the fund conceded, “I don’t know how this works”, according to Hopper. 

While FINRA has not announced any plans for rule changes, the regulator issued a notice in May reminding member firms of their supervisory responsibilities with complex products and seeking comments about future potential regulatory proposals as retail purchases have “increased significantly in recent years.”

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

Tags: eccleston law, finra, regulation best interest

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next
Quotes Bigger

If the regulators are after you, and are trying to make a case against you, and you are going to contest their allegations against you, make sure you have the best securities industry defense lawyers, Eccleston Law Firm. My case was spun into a combination of penalties including fines, cash settlements, CE courses and suspension. They were the best I have seen in action. When all was said and done, they had done their magic, my situation was negotiated and settled with a simple "letter of caution" and a case closed without action. It is the most important legal business decision you will ever make, make it Eccleston Law.

Rick R.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

1790960250 Law
October 2, 2026
FINRA Arbitrators Award Schwab Client $1.34 Million in Cryptocurrency Scam Dispute

A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Dispute Resolution Services arbitration panel awarded nearly $1.34 million in compensatory damages to a Charles Schwab & Co.

1790867615 Law
October 1, 2026
Prosecutors Target Multimillion-Dollar Investment Schemes Involving Promissory Notes

Federal prosecutors recently pursued two investment fraud cases involving promissory notes that caused combined investor losses exceeding $25 million.

1790789328 Law
September 30, 2026
SEC Approves FINRA Overhaul of Outside Business Activity Rules

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved FINRA's long-awaited overhaul of the rules governing outside business activities and private securities transactions by financial advisors.