Securities Lawyers Blog
According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker William King (King), previously associated with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, has at least 10 disclosable events. These events include 9 customer complaints, one tax lien, alleging that King recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.
FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on March 03, 2025.
Without admitting or denying the findings, King consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that he exercised discretion when he placed trades in six brokerage accounts held by four firm customers, three of whom were seniors, without prior written authorization from the customers and without his member firm having accepted the accounts as discretionary. The findings stated that King discussed investment strategy with the customers but had not received authorization to exercise discretion. In addition, King inaccurately attested in compliance questionnaires that he had not exercised discretionary trading authority in customer accounts.
