One Customer Alleges UBS Financial Services Broker William Shreve Misrepresented the Suitability of an Invest-in-and-Hold Options Overlay Strategy
William Shreve’s Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) Brokercheck Report, which is under analysis by investment loss lawyer Alan Rosca, shows that at least one of the Nebraska broker’s customers blames him for $3,000,000 in losses. The UBS Financial Services Inc. client filed a dispute in May 2020 against Shreve, alleging that he wasn’t forthcoming in disclosing how unsuitable investing in and holding options overlay strategies could be when they worked with him in between 2017 and 2020.
Investment loss lawyer Alan Rosca and his fellow Rosca Scarlato LLC attorneys often advocate for investors who have lost a significant portion of their financial assets due to brokers’ reported misrepresentations. These often center around the risks associated with making specific investment decisions. Attorney Rosca and his firm’s other lawyers are actively investigating customer complaints filed against Nebraska broker William Burton Shreve since May. Shreve’s investors should reach out to Alan Rosca or one of his colleagues at 888-998-0530 or arosca@rscounsel.law to discuss their experience working with this broker and any legal rights that they may have.
Another Previous Client Accused UBS’s William Shreve of Inadequately Liquidating an Estate’s Securities
Investment loss attorney Alan Rosca is also investigating another dispute filed by one of William Shreve’s customers. That claim, which is on the Nebraska broker’s FINRA Brokercheck Report, outlines how he allegedly insufficiently failed to liquidate an estate’s securities between February 24 and March 2 of 2020. The customer reports that they provided Shreve with instructions for liquidating these assets, but that he failed to adhere to them. The customer maintains that his alleged failure to follow directions resulted in a loss of $234,448.
UBS Broker William Shreve Had Two Prior Customer Disputes Filed Against Him Earlier in His Investment Adviser Career
The disputes mentioned above aren’t the first ones filed against broker Shreve by customers. His FINRA Brokercheck Report shows that it wasn’t long after he started working as a broker at Smith Hayes Financial Services Corporation. A customer filed a dispute accusing him of sales practice violations. The former client alleged that Shreve’s impropriety occurred between June 1995 and Jan. 1997 in their August 1998 dispute. The customer claimed they lost $412,000 in savings after taking his advice and received an $8,000 judgment in arbitration.
Another client, who filed a dispute against William Shreve in December 1989 while working with Dean Witter Reynolds, Inc., alleged that he provided unsuitable investment advice regarding the buying and selling of stock shares. Shreve and his employer ended up paying the client $10,000, which correlated with their losses, once the customer informed them that a lawsuit was pending.
Shreve Has Faced Disputes at All of His Previous Employers
William Shreve first started working for the Lincoln-based UBS Financial Services Inc. in 2009. He’s held the title of both broker and investment adviser since his tenure with the Nebraska firm began.
Smith Hayes Financial Services Corporation previously employed him as a broker between 1995 and 2009. His tenure with that company overlapped with his investment adviser role with Smith Hayes Advisers Inc., a position that he started in 1997 and left in 2009.
It wasn’t long after Shreve passed his series 7 exam in 1978 that he began working with Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. as a broker. He worked for that firm for 16 years up until 1995.
How Options Overlay Strategies Work and Why They May Be Too Risky for Some Investors
Options overlay strategies generally work by taking a lone holding of large-cap equities and taking a 100% long position regarding them. The fund then sells off short-term put options at a notional value on the Standard & Poor’s 500 indexes. This amount equates to the value of the shares times the strike price. It can go as high as 100% of the net assets contained in the fund, including the buys provided there are better short-term put options that have reduced strike prices that one can trade for in exchange
The UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES) program is an example of an options overlay strategy. UBS marketed this program as offering a defined maximum loss. The investment firm also allegedly gave investors the impression that they only stood to lose any premiums they paid. Many UBS customers lost a significant portion of their investment savings when their YES portfolios dropped 11% in value in Dec. 2018 and another 22% in March 2020.
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.
Your Options If You Invested with William Burton Shreve
The investment loss lawyers at Rosca Scarlato have years of experience investigating securities and other investment schemes and alleged impropriety related to them. Investor rights attorney Alan Rosca is currently investigating customer claims filed against Nebraska broker William Shreve with the expectation of filing suit against on behalf of investors who have lost their savings due to his alleged misrepresentations. Attorney Rosca and his colleagues typically take cases like this on a contingency fee basis, which that the firm advances all necessary costs, and only gets reimbursed if they win the case. No recovery, no fee.
Rosca Scarlato urges William Shreve’s investors to reach out to them for a complimentary consultation to analyze their case and learn more about their rights. Attorney Rosca and his colleagues can be reached at 888-998-0530 or emailed at arosca@rscounsel.law. You can also fill out the contact form on this page to share any details you may have about Shreve’s potential illicit actions.
