U.S. SEC charges Houston adviser with not disclosing fund payments
A Houston-based investment advisory firm steered clients to certain mutual funds without disclosing that it was receiving payments from the broker who offered those funds, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged in a civil fraud complaint on Tuesday.
Robare Group Ltd received a percentage of every dollar that its clients invested in the mutual funds, the SEC said in the complaint.
That gave the firm and co-owners Mark Robare and Jack Jones Jr. an incentive to recommend the funds to clients over other investment opportunities, the SEC said. The conflict of interest, which was unknown to investors, generated about $440,000 in additional revenue for the firm, the SEC said.
“We deny the charges. We intend to defend the allegations vigorously,” said Alan Wolper, a Chicago-based lawyer who is representing the firm and its co-owners.
Source: Reuters
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