LPL Financial Stockbroker Brian Lawrence Stephan Suspended for Misconduct

Brian Lawrence Stephan submitted an Offer of Settlement to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in which he was fined and suspended for allegedly recommending unsuitable investments and provided false information on his firm’s mutual fund exchange forms in violation of FINRA Rules 4511, 2111 and 2010, and NASD Ruled 2310. From November 2003 through August 27, 2014, Brian Lawrence Stephan was registered with LPL Financial LLC as a General Securities Representative. According to the FINRA findings, from May 2012 through May 2014, Stephan recommended and caused the execution of unsuitable investments in 20 different mutual fund families for an elderly customer. The findings stated the recommendations were unsuitable because the customer could have received a discount in sales charges by approximately $30,000 if she were to invest in larger amounts across fewer fund families. Based on the FINRA findings, Stephan lacked any reasonable basis, caused the customer to incur excessive sales and received $60,000 in commissions for the transactions. In addition to the findings, Stephan allegedly mismarked the  transactions as unsolicited and provided false information on his firm’s mutual fund exchange forms.

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