Hoffman, a former broker with SunTrust Investment Services in Waycross, Georgia had his FINRA registration revoked after being suspended
In June of 2016, Clay Hoffman was suspended by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for failing to provide information to the agency related to a number of allegations. In addition to unsuitable investment recommendations, Hoffman was accused of unauthorized trades and misrepresenting material facts.
Hoffman began work as a broker in 2001 with Edward Jones in St. Louis, and it didn’t take long before he ran into client issues. The first customer dispute came in 2006, and over the next nine years there were 13 more.
In 2013, after six years with SunTrust Investment Services in Waycross, Georgia, Hoffman was terminated when it was determined that some of his transactions “presented an unacceptable risk to the firm.” From 2013 until March 2016, Hoffman was registered with Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. and conducted business as Hoffman Investments.
In February of 2016, Hoffman was suspended by FINRA for 15 days and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for conducting discretionary transactions in one client’s account. Hoffman didn’t have prior written authorization from the client giving him the power of discretionary trading nor “written approval of the account as discretionary by his member firm.”
Hoffman didn’t admit or deny the findings, but he agreed to the penalties. However, because he failed to pay the fine, his FINRA registration was revoked. To learn more about Hoffman and the many disputes he’s been involved in, you can read his BrokerCheck report.
Did you entrust Clay Hoffman with your investments? You may be able to recover lost money. To find out, get in touch with the Silver Law Group to speak with a securities arbitration attorney. Scott Silver is the current chair of the American Trial Lawyers Association Securities and Financial Fraud Group and our expert legal team represents clients in securities law arbitration cases and other methods of legal action.
We’ll let you know about your options and what steps to take. And because we’re a contingency-based firm, unless you recover money, you won’t owe us anything. Call us toll-free at 1-800-975-4345 or just fill out our online contact form.