Press Releases
The Law Offices Of Jeffrey A. Feldman represents a retiree in a FINRA Arbitration claim
San Francisco, California, July 26, 2022. The Law Offices Of Jeffrey A. Feldman represents a retiree (“Claimant”) in a FINRA Arbitration claim (FINRA Case No. 22‐01611), against Steven Hirata (“Hirata”) and PFS Investments, Inc. (“PFS”), alleging that Hirata, a former broker at PFS, recommended that Claimant invest his retirement funds in a likely Ponzi‐ scheme called JMJ Capital.
The FINRA claim alleges that Hirata asserted that he had been investing in JMJ Capital himself for quite some time, and that the investments had worked out wonderfully. According to the allegations in the FINRA claim, the Claimant was directed by Hirata to transfer retirement funds from his account at PFS to his bank account, and then transfer the funds by wire from his bank account to JMJ Capital. Based on the Claimant’s long‐standing relationship with his broker, Hirata, and the trust and confidence Claimant placed in Hirata and PFS, Claimant believed all of Hirata’s representations were true, and did not think to question the bona fides of the investments, or how the investments were structured, per the FINRA filing. Also, per the FINRA claim, after an initial investment in 2018, and assurances from Hirata that the investment was doing very well, Claimant was encouraged to invest ever more funds from his PFS account into the JMJ Capital‐sponsored investments.
According to the claim filed with FINRA, Hirata made numerous misrepresentations about the JMJ Capital‐sponsored investments, both misrepresenting what Claimant was investing in, as well as withholding numerous significant material facts regarding the investments, including that the investments amounted to a classic Ponzi‐scheme, and that JMJ Capital Group had just been incorporated in September 2018, making it a brand new company, with no substantial track record. Another significant misrepresentation, according to the FINRA claim, was Hirata’s failure to tell Claimant about the significant criminal history of JMJ Capital’s principal, Richard Ramirez. Within just two years of Claimant’s initial investment in JMJ Capital, Claimant had been convinced to invest the great majority of his retirement funds, which he needed to live off of for the rest of his life, into JMJ Capital‐sponsored investments, as alleged in the FINRA claim. To date, Claimant has received back limited interest payments, and per the FINRA claim, none of his invested principal has been returned to him. More information about The Law Offices Of Jeffrey A. Feldman can be found at http://www.jeffreyfeldman.com.
The Law Offices of Jeffrey A. Feldman represents a Silicon Valley-based software engineer
San Francisco, California, March 16, 2022. The Law Offices of Jeffrey A. Feldman represents a Silicon Valley-based software engineer (“Claimant”), who was the victim of a new-age pump-and-dump scheme, which is alleged in a FINRA Arbitration claim (FINRA Case No. 22-00317) against Fidelity Brokerage Services (“Fidelity”). As alleged in the FINRA claim, a fraudster was able to take control of the Claimant’s Fidelity account by apparently hacking his home computer, and placing large trades to purchase almost two million shares of a Hong Kong listed penny stock (Chinlink International Holdings LTD) with the Claimant’s funds. According to allegations in the FINRA claim, this scheme allowed the fraudsters to sell their previously purchased shares of that penny stock for a much higher price. Though the Claimant quickly notified Fidelity that unauthorized trades had taken place in his account, according to the FINRA Claim, Fidelity failed and refused to bust the trades, leaving Claimant to bear the cost of the fraud in an amount of approximately $172,000.
As alleged in the FINRA claim, the Claimant had a very long relationship with Fidelity, and had never traded penny stocks in his Fidelity account. Pursuant to industry rules, it is alleged in the FINRA claim, Fidelity should have recognized that something untoward was likely going on in the Claimant’s account when almost two million shares of a foreign-listed penny stock was accumulated in his account in one day. It is further alleged in the FINRA claim that Fidelity should have taken action on Claimant’s account prior to the Claimant even contacting Fidelity, to notify him of what was taking place in his account, and making sure that he had authorized such trades. More information about The Law Offices of Jeffrey A. Feldman can be found at http://www.jeffreyfeldman.com.
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If you or someone you know is experiencing something similar, complete an online contact form for a free initial consultation about your concerns and to learn more about how Mr. Feldman can assist you. You can also reach Mr. Feldman by calling the office of Jeffrey A. Feldman at 415-413-8955.