MFDA Hearing Panel accepts settlement agreement with James Lewis

TORONTO, Oct. 26, 2022 /CNW/ - A settlement hearing in the matter of James Michael Lewis (the "Respondent") was held electronically by videoconference on October 24, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario before a three-member Hearing Panel of the Central Regional Council of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada ("MFDA").

The Hearing Panel accepted the settlement agreement dated October 20, 2022 (the "Settlement Agreement"), between Staff of the MFDA and the Respondent as a consequence of which the following sanctions were imposed on the Respondent:

• a prohibition from conducting securities related business while in the employ of or in association with a Member of the MFDA for a period of thirty months from June 7, 2022;
• a fine in the amount of $20,000 ("Fine");
• costs in the amount of $5,000 ("Costs");
• payment of the Fine and Costs shall be made in instalments as follows:
• $5,000 (Costs) on October 24, 2022;
• $5,000 (Fine) on October 24, 2022;
• $3,750 (Fine) on or before January 24, 2023;
• $3,750 (Fine) on or before April 24, 2023;
• $3,750 (Fine) on or before July 24, 2023;
• $3,750 (Fine) on or before October 24, 2023; and
•  shall in the future comply with MFDA Rules 1.1.1(c), 2.2.1, and 2.1.1.

In the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent admitted that, between November 2017 and July 2018, he signed or submitted account documents obtained by an unregistered individual to conduct securities related business and update Know-Your-Client information of clients of the Member without using the necessary due diligence to learn the essential facts relative to the clients, ensuring that transactions processed in their accounts were suitable, or ensuring that the transactions were authorized, thereby facilitating stealth advising, contrary to MFDA Rules 1.1.1(c), 2.2.1, and 2.1.1.

A copy of the Settlement Agreement is available on the MFDA website at www.mfda.ca. During the period described in the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent conducted business in the Strathroy, Ontario area.

The MFDA is the self-regulatory organization for Canadian mutual fund dealers, regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their approximately 76,695 Approved Persons with a mandate to protect investors and the public interest. For more information about the MFDA's complaint and enforcement processes, as well as links to 'Check an Advisor' and other Investor Tools, visit the For Investors page on the MFDA website.

SOURCE Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada

Charles Toth, Vice-President, Enforcement, 416-943-4619, [email protected]