Securities Lawyers Blog
The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that financial advisor Shane Appelbaum (Appelbaum), currently employed by Herbet J. Sims & Co, Inc. (Herbert J. Sims) has been subject to at least two customer complaints and one criminal matter during the course of his career. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), one of Appelbaum’s customer complaints likely involves the sale of structured products. The complaint alleges that Appelbaum recommended unsuitable investments in what are referred to as CDs issued by several banks.
In February 2020 a customer complained that Appelbaum violated the securities laws by alleging that Appelbaum made unsuitable sales of $75,000 in a Bank of America CD purchased in Oct. 2014, maturing 2030 and a $240,000 Citibank CD purchased in Jan. 2014, maturing 2034 purchased for the partnership which is beneficially owned by an elderly husband and wife. The claim alleges $86,864.90 and is currently pending.
In June 2018 a customer complained that Appelbaum violated the securities laws by alleging that Appelbaum’s investment recommendations involved unsuitable trades, negligence, fraud, and misrepresentation. The claim was settled for $40,000.
Structured products range in risk from benign to extreme. However, most structured products produce inferior risk/return profiles than ordinary debt or equity instruments because the brokerage firms that issue these products seek to profit from the spread between the payment to investors and the amount of money the brokerage firm can make from the issuance. When dealing with some of the more complex structured products most investors will lack the ability to understand the merits of investments nor are many structured products appropriate for investors seeking a fixed or reliable income and preservation of capital.