Miami-Dade County Advisor Barred for Refusal to Cooperate With FINRA Investigation into Undisclosed Private Placements
Alex Gerardo Herrera (CRD#: 3204779) is a former broker and investment advisor. Most recently, Mr. Herrera was employed at UBS Financial Services in Coral Gables, Florida. On August 8th, 2018, FINRA barred Mr. Herrera from the securities industry. FINRA took this disciplinary action after this broker refused to cooperate with a regulatory investigation into allegations that he engaged in unreported outside business activities and engaged in improper private securities transactions.
Allegations of Broker Misconduct: Alex Gerardo Herrera
Private Placements and Outside Business Activities
In May of 2018, broker Alex Gerardo Herrera voluntarily resigned from his position at UBS Financial Services. Under industry regulations, UBS Financial Services had a legal duty to report this resignation to securities regulators. The brokerage firm informed FINRA that Mr. Herrera resigned while he was under an active internal review due to the fact that he engaged in an undisclosed outside financial and real estate relationship with UBS Financial Services clients. This was in violation of industry rules and the written policies of UBS, since Mr. Herrera did not receive approval from his member firm before participating in these transactions.
Under FINRA Rule 3280, registered investment advisors have a professional duty to report private securities transactions to their member firm. If the investment advisor is receiving compensation for their participation in the transaction, they must get prior approval from their member firm. When brokerage firms give such approval, they then become responsible for overseeing the transaction. In this case, Alex Herrera failed to disclose the private placements and he never received the required authorization from UBS Financial Services.
Notably, a customer filed a complaint against former UBS Financial Services broker Alex Herrera in May of 2018. According to the information available on BrokerCheck, the investor alleges that Mr. Herrera stole money to purchase a vacation home. At the current time, this customer dispute is still pending. There has been no finding of wrongdoing against Mr. Herrera or UBS Financial Services.
Violation of FINRA Rule 8210
FINRA Rule 8210 compels brokers to cooperate with an investigation into potential misconduct. Specifically, FINRA members and all associated persons must provide written or oral testimony when it is requested by investigators. In this case, FINRA was actively investigating allegations of misconduct related to this broker’s private securities transactions. Mr. Herrera informed FINRA that he received their request for on-the-record testimony. However, he stated through his legal representative that he had no intention of offering testimony. As a result, Mr. Herrera has been barred from associating with any FINRA member in any capacity.
Get Help From Our Miami Private Placement Lawyers Today
At Carlson & Associates, P.A., our experienced South Florida securities fraud lawyers have deep experience handling cases involving private placements and brokers ‘selling away’ from their member firm. If you or your family member sustained serious investment losses in a private securities transactions, please do not hesitate to reach out to our Miami law office at 1 (305) 372-9700 for a fully confidential investment fraud consultation.
Resources:
brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/3204779
finra.org/sites/default/files/fda_documents/2018058446601%20Alex%20G.%20Herrera%20CRD%203204779%20AWC%20jm.pdf