Did you lose money investing with Gopi Vungarala (CRD# 4856193)?
Galvin Legal, PLLC is launching an investigation on behalf of investors who may have suffered losses investing with Gopi Vungarala. If you suffered losses investing with Gopi Vungarala, then Galvin Legal, PLLC may be able to help you recover your losses in a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA“) arbitration claim.
If you suffered losses and would like a free consultation with a securities attorney, then please call Galvin Legal, PLLC at 1-800-405-5117.
As of October 15, 2020, Gopi Vungarala’s FINRA BrokerCheck Report contains the following:
BARRED: FINRA has barred this individual from acting as a broker or otherwise associating with a broker-dealer firm.
Disclosure Events
1 Customer Dispute(s)
2 Regulatory Event(s)
See FINRA Disciplinary Proceeding No. 2014042291901 Complaint
See FINRA Disciplinary Proceeding No. 2014042291901 OHO Decision
See FINRA Disciplinary Proceeding No. 2014042291901 Extended OHO Decision
1 Employment Separation After Allegations
UPDATE 10/14/2020: According to FINRA’s January 2019 Disciplinary Actions: “Gopi Krishna Vungarala (CRD #4856193, Decatur, Texas) November 1, 2018 – Respondent Gopi Krishna Vungarala has appealed a NAC decision to the SEC. The NAC barred Vungarala from association with any FINRA member in any capacity and ordered him to disgorge $9,682,629, plus interest. The NAC affirmed the findings and sanctions imposed by OHO. The sanctions were based on findings that Vungarala willfully violated Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Rule 10b-5 thereunder and FINRA Rules 2020 and 2010 by making materially false and misleading statements to conceal his commissions on investments made by a Native American tribe he was employed by to manage its investment portfolio. The findings stated that Vungarala persuaded the tribe to invest in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and business development companies through a broker-dealer firm where he told the tribe he parked his registration. As a result, Vungarala received over $9 million in commissions. Through false and misleading statements, Vungarala repeatedly led the tribe to believe that he did not receive commissions on its transactions and that he had no conflict of interest. The findings also stated that Vungarala willfully misled the tribe regarding its eligibility for volume discounts, failing to disclose to the tribe that it was eligible to receive more than $3.3 million in volume discounts. Vungarala personally benefited from his misstatements and omissions concerning volume discounts because the discounts would have reduced his commissions. The bar remains in effect while under review by the SEC. (FINRA Case #2014042291901 Complaint, OHO Decision, and Extended OHO Decision)”
Current and Previous Registrations
12/13/2007 – 02/21/2017 PURSHE KAPLAN STERLING INVESTMENTS (CRD#:35747) MIDLAND, MI
10/06/2004 – 12/13/2007 AMERICAN GENERAL SECURITIES INCORPORATED (CRD#:13626) MIDLAND, MI
If you suffered losses and would like a free consultation with a securities attorney, then please call Galvin Legal, PLLC at 1-800-405-5117.
Due Diligence Requirement
FINRA requires broker’s to conduct due diligence on investments and to conduct a suitability analysis when recommending securities to a customer that takes into account the customer’s knowledge and experience. FINRA Rule 2111(a) states that “a member or an associated person must have a reasonable basis to believe that a recommended transaction or investment strategy involving a security or securities is suitable for the customer, based on the information obtained through the reasonable diligence of the member or associated person to ascertain the customer’s investment profile. A customer’s investment profile includes, but is not limited to, the customer’s age, other investments, financial situation and needs, tax status, investment objectives, investment experience, investment time horizon, liquidity needs, risk tolerance, and any other information the customer may disclose to the member or associated person in connection with such recommendation.”
Rule 2111 is composed of three main obligations: reasonable-basis suitability, customer-specific suitability, and quantitative suitability. Brokers and the brokerage firms they work for that fail to conduct adequate due diligence on investments they recommend or that make unsuitable recommendations can be held responsible for the customer’s losses in a FINRA arbitration claim.
If you suffered losses and would like a free consultation with a securities attorney, then please call Galvin Legal, PLLC at 1-800-405-5117.
Request a Free Consultation with a Securities Attorney
If you suffered losses investing with Gopi Vungarala and would like a free consultation with a securities attorney, then please call Galvin Legal, PLLC at 1-800-405-5117.
This information is all publicly available and is being provided to you by Galvin Legal, PLLC.
Galvin Legal, PLLC is a national securities arbitration, securities mediation, securities litigation, securities fraud, securities regulation and compliance, and investor protection law practice. For more information on Galvin Legal, PLLC and its representation of investors, please visit www.galvinlegal.com or call 1-800-405-5117.