John Piccarreto, a registered representative from San Antonio, Texas, formerly with First American Securities, was suspended from FINRA membership as a result of an investigation into his private business transactions and dealings with another company other than his firm, which is a violation of FINRA rules. Piccarreto entered into an acceptance waiver and consent agreement with FINRA in which he neither admitted nor denied the findings, but agreed to a suspension of 24 months and a fine of $15,000. He also must reregister as a representative after passing the required examination.
In June 2017, John Piccarreto agreed to the suspension and FINRA published its findings that he took part in multiple private securities dealings in which he offered investments to some of his clients without reporting the transactions to his firm. He received $500 per week from a different company for his private work with investments.
FINRA also discovered that he was not candid on the record during an investigation into his work on the private offerings. He said that he did not have any knowledge of any type of outside dealings, and knew nothing about the offerings. This was later found to be untrue, as he was closely involved with multiple private transactions.
John Piccarreto’s registration and disciplinary history
In order to lawfully sell investments to the public, one must either be registered or exempt from registration.
John Piccarreto was registered with First American Securities from June 2014 to July 2015.
According to FINRA’s CRD disclosure report, Piccarreto has been the subject of one regulatory investigation.
FINRA is the primary regulator for broker dealers and registered representatives in the United States. FINRA’s role is to promulgate standards and practices for the brokerage industry and to ensure compliance with its rules by licensed entities and individuals.
FINRA has two primary ways to ensure compliance with the securities laws: by means of an enforcement unit that investigates and disciplines wrongdoing, and through the establishment of an arbitration forum where investors can resolve disputes against broker dealers. FINRA’s arbitration forum, FINRA Dispute Resolution is the largest arbitration forum in the country for resolving investor disputes, and typically processes over 10,000 filings annually.
The Law Office of David Liebrader practices exclusively in the field of investment loss recovery. For the past 24 years, we have dedicated our law practice to assisting investors who have been victims of investment fraud via unlawful and unsuitable investment transactions. During that time, we have recovered money for over one thousand individuals, pension plans, trusts, and companies. The recoveries we have obtained via judgments, awards and settlements on behalf of our clients exceed $40,000,000.
If you suspect that you have been the victim of investment fraud, or had a financial advisor recommend unsuitable investments to you, call us today for a free, confidential consultation at (702) 380-3131.