A new wave of lawsuits and arbitrations are being filed on behalf of investors who purchased auction rate securities but have not been eligible to participate in redemptions offered by big banks as a result of regulatory settlements. See article entitled “‘Stranded’ ARS investors sue for a share of pie” by Jed Horowitz in the […]
Since the collapse of the auction rate securities market in February 2008, many of the broker-dealers who sold those securities have made arrangements to help customers get their money back?either because of regulatory actions, because of lawsuits, or because it was the right thing to do. Raymond James was one of the firms that hawked […]
On May 13, 2009, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) approved a rule change that requires brokers to disclose alleged sales practice violations made by a customer against a securities broker in the body of a civil lawsuit or arbitration claim, even if that broker is not named as a defendant or respondent. The […]
Investors who still hold auction-rate securities are facing many increasing problems, according to an article in today’s Bloomberg.com by Michael McDonald. Last February, the $330 billion market for auction-rate securities essentially froze when major Wall Street firms discontinued supporting auction-rate securities. A year later, investors are still stuck with as much as $176 billion of […]
Wells Fargo appears to be joining Raymond James and Stifel Nicolas in refusing responsibility for its part in the auction-rate securities fiasco. Although many large underwriters and broker/dealers that sold auction-rate securities have already settled claims, Wells Fargo recently denied allegations of wrongdoing in a lawsuit filed by Washington State regulators. In the lawsuit, regulators […]
Time may be running out on certain auction-rate securities claims. Some investors may need to act promptly if they wish to protect their rights. The laws of each state establish time limits (statutes of limitations) within which legal claims must be asserted. Those time limits vary from state to state. Claims not brought within the […]
Investors holding auction-rate securities (“ARS”) sold by Raymond James will have to initiate legal action against the firm to recoup their ARS losses or prepare for a long wait as they continue to hold the illiquid securities. Although under investigation from the SEC, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation and the New York Attorney General’s […]
Right before the stock market fell off a cliff in September, the news media were filled with stories about the regulators forcing investment banks to settle the claims of individual investors whose assets were stuck in frozen auction rate securities. It turns out, however, that many investors have fallen through the cracks. Obviously, the largest […]
There will be some scary times for Wall Street firms in the months ahead according to Business Week writers David Henry’s and Mathew Goldstein’s September 8, 2008 article “More Trash Than Cash.” The writers portray a scenario that could result in tremendous chaos for both Wall Street firms and the capital markets. Christopher Whalen of […]
While regulators have announced tentative settlements with major Wall Street firms (Merrill Lynch, UBS, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Wachovia, Citigroup, and Deutsche Bank) that underwrote auction-rate securities, these settlements have not addressed the situation of thousands of investors that purchased auction-rate securities through smaller brokerage firms. Most of these smaller brokerage firms were […]
