MFDA Hearing Panel approves settlement agreement with Christopher Singer
TORONTO, Feb. 24, 2017 /CNW/ - A settlement hearing in the matter of Christopher J. Singer (the "Respondent") took place on February 22, 2017 in Vancouver, British Columbia before a three-member Hearing Panel of the Pacific Regional Council of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada ("MFDA").
The Hearing Panel approved the settlement agreement (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 fine in the amount of $63,500;
- costs in the amount of $10,000; and
- shall in future comply with MFDA Rules 2.2.1 and 2.1.1.
In the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent admitted that:
| a) |
between June 2011 and March 17, 2014, he failed to use due diligence to learn the essential facts relative to client AO and accurately record the essential facts on the client's New Account Application Forms, contrary to MFDA Rules 2.2.1(a) and 2.1.1; |
| b) |
between June 2011 and March 17, 2014, he failed to ensure that an investment recommendation he made to client AO was suitable having regard to the client's Know-Your-Client ("KYC") factors including her investment objectives, investment knowledge, risk tolerance, time horizon, and failed to ensure appropriate diversification of her investment portfolio, contrary to MFDA Rules 2.2.1 and 2.1.1; |
| c) |
between June 2011 and March 17, 2014, he failed to adequately explain the risks, benefits, material assumptions and features of exempt securities he recommended to client AO, thereby failing to present the investment to the client in a fair and balanced manner, contrary to MFDA Rules 2.2.1 and 2.1.1; and; |
| d) |
between November 17, 2011 and March 17, 2014, he failed to review or reconsider his recommendation to client AO in light of criteria for assessing the suitability of the ROI Funds provided by the Member in December 2011, contrary to MFDA Rules 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 carried on business in White Rock, British Columbia.
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 83,000 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, Director, Litigation, 416-943-4619, [email protected]; Jeff Mount, Vice-President, Pacific Region, 604-694-8846, [email protected]
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