Michael F. Ginestro (CRD #2468911), a long-time Merrill Lynch broker based in Los Angeles, is under scrutiny after an investor filed a $2.4 million Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration complaint in May 2025. The filing accuses Ginestro of unsuitable investment recommendations, misrepresentations and omissions tied to municipal bond strategies. Pending $2.4 Million Customer Complaint  [...]

J.P. Morgan broker Richard M. Ciraco (CRD #825969) is once again under scrutiny, with a new $450,000 customer dispute adding to a career marked by past complaints. Currently registered with J.P. Morgan Securities, where he has worked since 2002, Ciraco now has three customer disputes on his record — one pending and two resolved — [...]

Ford Gray Keeler (CRD# 1696709), a financial advisor currently with LPL Financial in Grand Junction, Colorado, is facing fresh scrutiny. He has a pending $210,000 customer dispute tied to alternative investments and a prior settlement from earlier in his career. Over the years, Keeler has moved across multiple firms, and investors have brought forward complaints [...]

Jihoon Park (CRD #6535514), a former broker with MML Investors Services in Fairfax, Virginia, is facing serious regulatory and customer disputes. In July 2025, FINRA suspended Park for failing to respond to regulatory requests, and he is also the subject of a pending customer complaint alleging more than $2.6 million in losses tied to cryptocurrency [...]

Edward Jones broker Zwi Anthony Pechthalt (CRD #2422846) is facing another customer complaint, adding to a long history of disputes on his record. Pechthalt has now been named in eight customer complaints over the years, with allegations ranging from unsuitable recommendations to unauthorized trading. His latest dispute remains pending as of July 2025. History of [...]

Two former Synapse Brokerage executives are facing a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) complaint over their roles in the collapse of a high-profile “banking-as-a-service” platform. FINRA alleges Jeffrey Alan Stanley (CRD #4645288) and Mark Elliot Paverman (CRD #1046105) failed in their supervisory and compliance responsibilities, leaving millions of customer accounts at risk (Case #2023080111701). Allegations [...]

Former broker James Thaddeus Walesa (CRD #1061209) is facing a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) complaint after allegedly refusing to provide documents or appear for testimony during an ongoing investigation. According to FINRA, Walesa declined multiple requests for information and failed to comply with sworn testimony requirements. The investigation centers on his business practices, his [...]

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has filed a complaint against former Merrill Lynch broker Ali F. Chehab (CRD #7625979) for allegedly refusing to cooperate with an investigation into potential misconduct. FINRA’s inquiry involves allegations of selling away, unauthorized trading and material misrepresentations to customers (Case #2024082633901). Why FINRA Filed the Complaint According to the [...]