UBS Agrees to Pay $25 Million to Settle SEC Fraud Charges Related to YES

Posted on July 13th, 2022 at 3:33 PM
UBS Agrees to Pay $25 Million to Settle SEC Fraud Charges Related to YES

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law:

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has agreed to a settlement with UBS Financial Services. The firm has agreed to pay $25 million to settle fraud charges pertaining to a complex options trading strategy known as YES, or Yield Enhancement Strategy. 

UBS marketed and sold YES to nearly 600 investors via its domestic financial advisor platform between February 2016 and February 2017, according to the SEC. The SEC alleged that UBS failed to provide its financial advisors with adequate training and supervision related to the YES investments. Although UBS recognized and recorded the substantial risks associated with the YES investments, the firm failed to share this material information with investors or its advisors, according to the SEC. 

The SEC further alleged that UBS’s advisors marketed the strategy without sufficiently understanding the risks associated with the YES investments or a reasonable belief that the advice provided was in the best interest of their clients. Without admitting or denying any of the SEC’s investigatory findings, UBS agreed to pay a civil penalty of $17.4 million, disgorgement of $5.8 million and prejudgment interest of $1.4 million. 

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

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, sec, YES

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

If you are being bothered by the Regulators, call Eccleston Law, you won't regret it.

Rick R.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

February 27, 2026
Eighth Circuit Rejects Emergency Injunction in Advisor Departure Dispute

A federal appeals court ruled against an advisory firm seeking immediate, injunctive relief after a team of advisors left with hundreds of millions in client assets.

February 26, 2026
FINRA Bars Former Cambridge Advisor After Refusal to Cooperate With Communications Probe

A former advisor affiliated with Cambridge Investment Research has been barred from the securities industry after declining to comply with a regulatory investigation, according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

February 25, 2026
Advisors Increase Crypto Allocations as Merrill Lynch Warns of Significant Risks

Financial advisors are placing more client assets into digital currencies, even as major firms caution investors about the asset class's volatility and speculative nature.