The Spring Lake broker has been involved in numerous customer disputes and could receive sanctions from both FINRA and the SEC
Richard Grant Cody has been a broker for 18 years, during which time 16 customer disputes have been levied against him. As a result of the most recent claims, he is also currently being investigated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The numerous charges against Cody include misrepresentation, unauthorized trading, and even theft. But one of the most egregious allegations concerns some of his former retired clients. In late 2016, the SEC filed a complaint against Cody in a Boston federal court alleging that he defrauded at least three clients over several years.
According to the SEC, Cody concealed from his clients that their retirement accounts had suffered losses and that the monthly payments they were getting were depleting their savings. Cody is alleged to have made misleading statements which led his clients to believe their investments were rising in value and the money they were receiving was due to gains.
Cody allegedly went to great measures to keep up the ruse. These reported actions include making wire transfers from sources other than the retirement accounts, sending a client a fraudulent document concerning a non-existent annuity investment, and issuing fake tax forms.
In March of 2016, Cody reportedly told a husband and wife that they had over $1 million in their investment accounts when they actually had less than $165,000. The allegation that Cody kept up the lie for so long prevented his clients from doing anything to stop the losses.
The SEC says that since “their prime working years now well behind them, Cody’s deceptive scheme has irreparably damaged their financial security, causing immense anxiety and fear and creating the real possibility that they may suffer further dire consequences.”
Many recent allegations and the SEC’s action against Cody stem from his time at Boston Investment Partners in Spring Lake, NJ from 2013 to the present.
From March 1997 to September 2016, Cody was also registered with seven firms:
- Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated – New York City
- Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated – New York City Salomon Smith Barney Inc. – New York City
- Salomon Smith Barney Inc. – New York CityLeerink Swann & Company – Boston, MA
- Leerink Swann & Company – Boston, MAGunnAllen Financial, Inc – Boston, MA
- GunnAllen Financial, Inc – Boston, MAWestminster Financial Securities, Inc. – Providence, RI
- Westminster Financial Securities, Inc. – Providence, RIConcorde Investment Services, LLC – Spring Lake, NJ
- Concorde Investment Services, LLC – Spring Lake, NJIFS Securities – Spring Lake, NJ
- IFS Securities – Spring Lake, NJ
Since 2014, Cody also worked as an investment advisor representative for Concorde Asset Management in Spring Lake, NJ.
The BrokerCheck report generated by FINRA has much more information on Richard Grant Cody.
If Cody managed your investments, it’s possible his actions violated securities industry regulations and cost you money. To find out, get in touch with the Silver Law Group. We can determine if you are a victim and then discuss your possible options to recover lost funds. For a free consultation with an elder financial fraud and securities arbitration attorney, call us at 1-800-975-4345 or reach us through our online form.