Registered broker Atul Makharia of the Centaurus Financial Inc. brokerage firm of South Carolina has various customer dispute disclosures arising out of the allegation of unsuitable investments, according to an investigation by attorney Alan Rosca.
Broker misconduct attorney Alan Rosca of the Rosca Scarlato LLC law firm is investigating conduct related to the various customer dispute disclosures involving the Centaurus broker Atul Makharia on the allegations of unsuitable investment recommendations.
Centaurus Financial Inc. is a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member firm, and Atul Makharia is a member of the firm as at the time of this investigation.
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Registered Broker Atul Makharia Was the Subject of Multiple Customer Dispute Disclosures
Relying on publicly-available reports on the Atul Makharia’s FINRA Brokercheck page, the investigation by broker misconduct attorney Alan Rosca indicates that he has been the subject of eight (8) customer disputes between January 2017 and June 2020, primarily on the allegations of unsuitable investment recommendation.
In June 2020 a customer requested $100,000 and alleged over concentration of customer’s accounts in unsuitable investments.
In March 2020, one of the Atul Makharia customers instituted a dispute proceeding on the allegation that the broker over concentrated her investment in “unsuitable, complex, high risk, speculative and illiquid investments. Based on the allegation which was allegedly done between 2017 to 2018, the client was seeking $150,000 in damages and settled for $57,5000.
In another client dispute instituted in February 2020, the client sought $100,000 in damages on the similar allegation of Makharia recommending unsuitable investments and breaching his fiduciary duty. In this dispute, the client did not specify the period during which the alleged act was conducted, and it settled for $10,000.
In August 2019, another client instituted a dispute proceeding seeking $600,000 in damages and accepted a settlement of $30,000 one year later. The client alleged that the broker similarly over concentrated her investments in unsuitable and illiquid investments.
Another client also alleged that the financial advisor misrepresented and recommended unsuitable investments and breached fiduciary duty between 2015 and 2018 in a customer dispute instituted in June 2019. The customer seeks to recover $100,000 in damages and settlement amount is $14,750.
In addition, Atul Makharia has also settled a customer dispute disclosure filed in 2018. In November 2018, the client alleged that the broker recommended unsuitable investments and other allegations associated therewith. The client sought $200,000 in damages but the dispute was settled for $35,180.
Another dispute was initiated a month before in October 2018. The customer dispute was on the same allegation of unsuitable investment recommendation, with $333,000 being sought in damages by the customer and the settlement amount accepted being $40,000.
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Generally speaking, an allegation of unsuitable investment recommendation against a broker is a serious allegation. This is because it is an allegation of the breach of a broker’s fundamental duty. One fundamental duty a broker owes to the investor is to ensure that he acts in good faith and recommends suitable investments to the clients.
The broker is expected to ensure that any investment being recommended to the client is a viable investment suitable for any investor at all. Afterwards, the broker is to determine whether the investment recommendation is suitable to the specific needs of the investor while considering the age, tax status, risk profile and liquidity needs of the clients among others.
All these are general considerations, not necessarily applicable to any one case, and do not constitute legal advice. Investors looking for legal advice for their particular situation should contact a qualified lawyer and discuss about the facts applicable to their specific case.
In the light of the customer dispute disclosures, the customers allege that Atul Makharia did not carry out this duty diligently. In the particulars of some of the allegations, the clients alleged that he recommended illiquid investments and highly risky investments among others. Where proven, the broker will be liable for such allegations.
Finally, it is important to note that, as of the date of this article, there has not been a finding of liability as to the complaints or allegations mentioned in this article, unless otherwise indicated. Any reader should also read the original sources hyperlinked in this blog for accuracy, including any BrokerCheck report and/or record of any disciplinary or regulatory action. Those sources are incorporated by reference into the text of this blog, and are the governing materials in case of any inconsistencies or typos in this blog.
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Securities Lawyer Investigating Potential Options on Behalf of Atul Makharia Customers
The Rosca Scarlato LLC law firm represents investors who lose money as a result of investment-related fraud or misconduct and is currently investigating conduct related to broker Atul Makharia’s multiple customer dispute disclosures on the allegation of unsuitable investment recommendation.
The firm takes most cases of this type on a contingency fee basis and advances the case costs, and only gets paid for their fees and costs out of money recovered for clients. Attorney Alan Rosca, a securities lawyer and adjunct professor of securities regulation, has represented thousands of victimized investors across the country and around the world in cases ranging from arbitrations to class actions.
Investors who believe they lost money as a result of conducts related to broker Atul Makharia’s multiple customer dispute disclosures on the allegation of unsuitable investment recommendation may contact attorney Alan Rosca for a free no-obligation evaluation of their recovery options, at 888-998-0530, via email at arosca@rscounsel.law, or through the contact form on this webpage.
