Brokerage Firm Review: SagePoint Financial

What current and prospective clients should know about complaints and regulatory actions against SagePoint Financial

SagePoint Financial (CRD#: 133763) is a brokerage firm and investment advisory firm licensed to operate in 53 U.S. states and territories.

With a main office in Maricopa County, Arizona, the firm has been a member of the securities industry since 2015.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) reports that SagePoint Financial has 24 disclosures on its record, including 13 regulatory events and 11 FINRA arbitration claims.

Here, we review some of the most notable disclosures and we highlight a recent securities fraud lawsuit against the company.

If you are considering becoming a client of SagePoint Financial – or you are currently a client – it’s important that you know about the customer complaints and regulatory actions against the firm.

Toward that end, we maintain a running list of links to news stories about SagePoint Financial customer complaints and regulatory actions. We have also documented several of the most significant cases involving SagePoint broker misconduct.

Browse SagePoint Financial Complaint and Regulatory Action News

• Gary Max Bowman, Broker with SagePoint Financial, Suspended for 3 Months Following Allegations of Unsuitable Investment Recommendations (7/19/2021)
• Janie Garza-Clark, Formerly of SagePoint Financial, Named in Customer Complaint Alleging Unsuitable Investment Recommendations (7/7/2021)
• Christopher Bice, Broker with SagePoint Financial, Facing Multiple Customer Disputes Alleging Unsuitable Recommendations (6/23/2021)
• Grant Christopher Birkley, Formerly of Sagepoint Financial, Barred by FINRA Following Refusal to Produce Documents and Information (6/14/2021)
• David John Melilli, Formerly of Sagepoint Financial, Named in FINRA Investigation Alleging Recommendation of Unsuitable Investments (4/26/2021)
• Cubby Bice, Broker with Sagepoint Financial, Facing Multiple Customer Disputes Alleging Unsuitable Recommendations (4/12/2021)
• Troy Baily, Formerly of Sagepoint Financial, Suspended by FINRA While Facing $135K Customer Dispute Alleging Improper Investment Recommendations (10/23/2020)
• Timothy Jan Vanlohuizen, Broker for Sagepoint Financial, Subject of Customer Disputes Totaling Over $450K (4/22/2020)
• Frederic O’Hara, Formerly of Sagepoint Financial, Suspended by FINRA Over Allegations He Engaged in Unapproved Outside Business Activities (3/20/2020)

SagePoint Financial: Notable Cases Involving Broker Negligence or Misconduct

According to BrokerCheck, SagePoint Financial has accumulated 24 FINRA disclosures. A “disclosure” refers to customer disputes, disciplinary events and financial matters on the brokerage firm’s record.

To access information regarding the company, please reference the firm’s Central Registration Depository (CRD) number: 6413.

Here, our securities fraud attorneys discuss three of the most notable recent cases that have been brought against SagePoint Financial.

SagePoint Financial Sued Over GPB Losses

SagePoint Financial is now implicated in the GPB Capital lawsuit. It is one of many brokerage firms that recommended GPB Capital private placement investments to its customers. GPB is currently the subject of a major Ponzi scheme investigation. State and federal regulators are reviewing the representations by GPB Capital and the company’s accounting practices.

According to reporting from InvestmentNews, a $400,000 FINRA arbitration claim was recently filed against SagePoint Financial related to losses sustained in GPB Capital. If your financial advisor or broker-dealer recommended GPB Capital, you may be eligible to recover compensation for your losses.

FINRA Disclosure – Failure to Properly Supervise (July 2018)

In July of 2018, SagePoint Financial consented to sanctions after allegations that the firm failed to put an adequate supervisory system in place. FINRA alleged that the broker-dealer’s improper supervisory system resulted in its financial advisors making unsuitable investment recommendations.

More specifically, SagePoint Financial allegedly failed to properly supervise its representatives’ sales of variable annuities. The company agreed to pay a $200,000 fine and to create and implement a new supervisory system that was a better design to serve investors.

SEC Disclosure – Breach of Fiduciary Duty (March 2016)

In March of 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) took administrative enforcement action against SagePoint Financial. The regulator determined that SagePoint Financial and some of its individual investment advisors breached the fiduciary duty standard. Among other things, the SEC assessed that SagePoint Financial representatives improperly failed to disclose conflicts of interests while recommending certain investment products.

These investment products were more expensive for investors than were reasonable and comparable alternatives. In relation to the alleged misconduct, the SEC issued the brokerage a fine of $7.5 million. Beyond that, SagePoint Financial had to pay $2 million in restitution and disgorgement.

FINRA Disclosure – Misrepresentations (August 2014)

In August of 2014, a FINRA arbitration panel in Las Vegas, Nevada ordered SagePoint Financial to pay an investor $1,462,000 in compensation for damages sustained after the firm made material misrepresentations. The underlying action in this case was in relation to losses in real estate investment trusts (REITs).

Get Immediate Assistance from a Securities Fraud Attorney

At ​Sonn Law Group​, our legal professionals are dedicated to advocating for investors and their family members. If you sustained losses due to brokerage firm misconduct, we are here to guide you through the claims process. To arrange a free, strictly private review of your case, please call our legal team right away.

Disclaimer:​ ​This article contains opinions and NOT statements of fact in any way whatsoever. The information here is general information that should not be taken as legal advice. NO attorney-client relationship is established between you and our attorneys by reading this article. This article is attorney advertising and should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a qualified securities lawyer.