Silver Law Group is investigating former New York-based broker Christopher J. Calandrino (CRD# 5238231) after he resigned from Joseph Stone Capital L.L.C. (CRD# 159744) for allegedly selling outside investments.
According to Calandrino’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, Joseph Stone allowed Calandrino to voluntarily resign in October 2016 while the firm investigated him over selling away allegations as well as for various potential violations of firm policy and regulatory rules and regulations.
Following Calandrino’s resignation, FINRA permanently barred him in November 2016 after he failed to respond to a FINRA request for information.
Currently, one FINRA arbitration complaint is pending against Calandrino, which alleges portfolio mismanagement and unsuitability. The complaint was filed in August 2016.
In Calandrino’s eight-year securities industry career, he has worked for 13 different firms. From March 2012 until his resignation in October, Calandrino’s has been employed by Joseph Gunnar & Co. LLC (CRD# 24795); First Midwest Securities, Inc. (CRD# 21786); CBG Financial Group, Inc. (6578) (also known as IAA Financial LLC) in West Palm Beach, Florida; Dalton Strategic Investment Services Inc. (CRD# 23485); National Securities Corporation (CRD# 7569); Cape Securities Inc. (CRD# 7072); and Joseph Stone. All but CBG/IAA were based in New York.
The term “selling away” is used when a broker sells or solicits the sale of securities that are not held or offered by the brokerage firm he or she is associated. Usually, the investments sought to be sold by the rogue broker are not approved by the employing firm and are often private placements or other alternative investments.
This is an important issue, as our firm sees many cases in which brokerage firms allege they conducted due diligence and the due diligence conducted was inadequate. In the cases of selling away, you have a rogue broker selling an investment that was either not vetted at all by the employing brokerage firm or was vetted and determined unsuitable for the brokerage firm’s customer base.
Brokers and brokerage firms have a duty to recommend suitable investments to their customers. This entails ensuring the investment is generally suitable for investment purposes and also suitable for the particular investor, factoring age, investment goal, and other factors.
On top of the duty to recommend suitable investments, a brokerage firm has a duty to supervise its brokers. The brokerage firm is responsible for the actions of its brokers.
FINRA arbitration is a fast, efficient way to recover your lost investment funds. We work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay us nothing unless we win and recover money for you.
If you have invested with Chris J. Calandrino and any of the aforementioned brokerage firms and have lost money doing so, you may be able to recover some or all of your losses. Our lawyers are experienced in recovering investor losses due to broker and brokerage firm misconduct through FINRA arbitration.
Silver Law Group represents the interests of investors who have been the victims of investment fraud. If you have questions about your legal rights, please contact Scott Silver of the Silver Law Group for a free consultation at ssilver@silverlaw.com or toll free at (800) 975-4345.