FINRA Takes Action Against Former Cambridge Advisor for Annuity Exchange Violations

Posted on February 7th, 2024 at 3:10 PM
FINRA Takes Action Against Former Cambridge Advisor for Annuity Exchange Violations

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law 

Malay Kumar, a former advisor affiliated with Cambridge Investment Research, recently agreed to settle a disciplinary matter brought by FINRA. The AWC (Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent) reflects a $10,000 fine and a 12-month suspension. The settlement revealed that Kumar recommended a series of variable annuity exchanges that violated Reg BI.

According to the settlement terms, Kumar agreed to pay $50,103 in restitution to seven customers. These customers incurred unnecessary surrender fees due to Kumar's recommendations between June 2018 and October 2021. As reported by AdvisorHub, Kumar encouraged clients to surrender existing variable annuities and reinvest the proceeds into new annuities without adequately considering the substantial surrender fees and the potential loss of benefits and liquidity.

The AWC outlined multiple regulatory violations by Kumar. In addition to violating Regulation Best Interest, he also breached its predecessor suitability requirement. Furthermore, FINRA imposed a violation of its books-and-records rule, as Kumar falsely indicated on 18 annuity purchase forms that they were not part of an exchange or purchased with proceeds from an earlier sale. Additionally, Kumar was found to violate Rule 2010, which requires members to uphold "high standards" of conduct. 

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities, employment, transition, regulatory, and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, finra

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

If the regulators are after you, and are trying to make a case against you, and you are going to contest their allegations against you, make sure you have the best securities industry defense lawyers, Eccleston Law Firm. My case was spun into a combination of penalties including fines, cash settlements, CE courses and suspension. They were the best I have seen in action. When all was said and done, they had done their magic, my situation was negotiated and settled with a simple "letter of caution" and a case closed without action. It is the most important legal business decision you will ever make, make it Eccleston Law.

Rick R.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

March 14, 2025
Apex Clearing to Pay $3.2 Million in FINRA Settlement Over Securities Lending Violations

Apex Clearing, the clearing arm of Apex Fintech Solutions, has agreed to pay $3.2 million to settle FINRA allegations that it failed to ensure customers received compensation for lending their securities.

March 13, 2025
Congress Considers Expanding the Accredited Investor Definition

A recent congressional hearing examined potential reforms to the accredited investor definition, a critical threshold determining who can participate in private market investments.

March 12, 2025
GPB Capital Investors May Receive Some Compensation Under Proposed Distribution Plan

GPB Capital Holdings investors have not received returns on their investments since 2018. According to InvestmentNews, after years of litigation, a court-appointed receiver has submitted a plan to return funds to the 17,000 investors who purchased $1.8 billion in GPB limited partnerships.