According to FINRA, Albert Lewis DeGaetano was assessed a deferred fine of $7,500 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in all capacities for six months for executing securities transactions in customer accounts without authorization and for making materially inaccurate statements concerning his firm identity and job title.

DeGaetano executed securities transactions without speaking to any customer representative after speaking with an employee of a customer who was not an authorized party on the customer's accounts. The unauthorized transactions included purchases of exchange traded funds and bonds with a total principal value of approximately $7.2 million and generated approximately $113,000 in total trading costs. The firm reimbursed the customer for these trading costs, but the unauthorized trading represented a serious breach of DeGaetano's obligations.

In addition to these large unauthorized trades, DeGaetano executed unauthorized securities transactions with a total principal value of approximately $30,721 in three other customer accounts, demonstrating a pattern of trading without proper authorization rather than an isolated incident.

Unauthorized trading is a fundamental violation of customer rights. Customers must authorize transactions in their accounts (unless they have granted written discretionary authority, which was not the case here). By executing trades without speaking to authorized representatives on the accounts, DeGaetano exceeded his authority and exposed customers to unwanted market risk and trading costs.

DeGaetano's violations extended beyond unauthorized trading to misrepresentations about his identity and employment. He used the online interface of his firm's clearing firm to order business cards identifying himself as a senior vice president of the clearing firm. However, DeGaetano was never associated with or employed by the clearing firm and did not hold the title of senior vice president. Despite this, he used these fraudulent business cards when meeting with customers and others.

Additionally, DeGaetano inaccurately referred to the clearing firm as his employer in calls he made to his former firm and another individual. These misrepresentations created confusion about who DeGaetano worked for and what his actual position and authority were. Customers and others who received his business cards or heard him describe himself as a senior vice president of the clearing firm were misled about his true employment and title.

Misrepresenting one's employer and title is serious because customers make decisions about whom to trust based in part on the firm affiliation and position of the representative. The clearing firm's reputation may have given customers false confidence in DeGaetano's authority and oversight.

The six-month suspension reflects both the unauthorized trading and the misrepresentations about employment and title. Investors should verify representatives' employment and titles through FINRA's BrokerCheck system.