MFDA Hearing Panel accepts settlement agreement with Roger Gebhardt

TORONTO, Nov. 14, 2022 /CNW/ -  A settlement hearing in the matter of Roger Eldred Gebhardt (the "Respondent") was held electronically by videoconference on October 31, 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, in a majority decision, accepted the settlement agreement dated September 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 in any capacity while in the employ of or associated with any MFDA Member for a period of eight (8) years, commencing October 31, 2022;
• a fine in the amount of $70,000 ("Fine");
• costs in the amount of $7,500 ("Costs");
• payment of the Fine and Costs shall be made in instalments as follows:
• $27,500 (Fine) on October 31, 2022;
• $3,750 (Costs) on October 31, 2022;
• $42,500 (Fine) on or before December 15, 2022; and
• $3,750 (Costs) on or before December 15, 2022.

In the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent admitted that:

a)  commencing on September 17, 2018, he failed to disclose to the Member a conflict or potential conflict of interest that arose when he became aware that a client had named his spouse as the sole estate trustee and sole beneficiary of the client's estate in the client's will, thereby failing to ensure that the conflict or potential conflict of interest was immediately disclosed to the Member and addressed by the exercise of responsible business judgment influenced only by the best interests of the client, contrary to the Member's policies and procedures and MFDA Rules 2.1.4 and 2.1.1; and

b)  commencing no later than November 9, 2018, he failed to disclose to the Member a conflict or potential conflict of interest that arose when he became aware that he was named by a client as the recipient of a $25,000 bequest in the client's will, thereby failing to ensure that the conflict or potential conflict of interest was immediately disclosed to the Member and addressed by the exercise of responsible business judgment influenced only by the best interests of the client, contrary to the Member's policies and procedures and MFDA Rules 2.1.4 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 Hanover, 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]