Securities Lawyers Blog
According to the BrokerCheck records kept by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) broker John Cholankeril Jr. (Cholankeril) has been the subject of at least six customer complaints, one employment separation, and one regulatory action. The customer complaints against Cholankeril allege that the broker made unsuitable investments, misrepresented certain mutual funds, and misrepresented auction rate securities (ARS) among other claims. In 2004, Cholankeril was terminated by PNC Investments for failing to abide by company policies. Specifically, the brokerage firm claimed that a certain mutual fund transaction was made inappropriately. In addition, in 2006, the NASD brought an action against Cholankeril alleging that the broker violated industry rules in that he made an inappropriate transaction in a mutual fund.
Cholankeril entered the securities industry in 1996. Since February 2005, Cholankeril has been associated with Chase Investment Services Corp. and after 2012, with J.P. Morgan Securities LLC.
Advisers have an obligation to deal fairly with investors and that obligation includes making suitable investment recommendations. In order to make suitable recommendations the broker must have a reasonable basis for recommending the product or security based upon the broker’s investigation of the investments properties including its costs, benefits, risks, tax consequences, and other relevant factors. In addition, the broker must also understand the customer’s specific investment objectives to determine whether or not the specific product or security being recommended is appropriate for the customer based upon their needs.
The number of complaints and regulatory actions against Cholankeril is relatively large by industry standards. According to InvestmentNews, only about 12% of financial advisors have any type of disclosure event on their records. Brokers must disclose different types of events, not necessarily all of which are customer complaints. These disclosures can include IRS tax liens, judgments, and even criminal matters.
Investors who have suffered losses may be able recover their losses through securities arbitration. The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are experienced in representing investors in cases where their broker has acted inappropriately. Our consultations are free of charge and the firm is only compensated if you recover.