July 14, 2018
Thank you for this opportunity. My comments on the relationship between advisers and brokers and the retail investment public. (Aka "Main Street Investors.")
1. All people involved in trading/selling/purchasing securities should have a fiduciary relationship with the customer. All of them. This is an industry rife with corruption, double-dealing, and deceptive talk. They are not to be trusted. The securities crisis of 2008-2009 is just one of many times these people's frauds have hurt not only individual investors, but the nation as a whole.
2. In addition to having a fiduciary relationship, the people involved in trading/selling/purchasing securities should reveal all fees AND commissions for all purchases. (The hidden bonuses paid to salespeople who push life insurance and various annuities are large, and should be known to the purchaser.)
When I first started investing, I was the victim of misleading, deceptive and inappropriate advice/guidance/recommendations from a broker with the Paine-Webber firm. (Now UBS Wealth Management.) When I discovered that I had been cheated, and tried to file complaints, I discovered that the actions Paine-Webber took were legal. (Which did not make them any less dishonest.) As a result, I lost thousands of dollars early in my investment career, which, over the last 25 years, have harmed the long-term growth of my retirement planning.
Anything less than full honesty and disclosure will be a disservice to the public, and continued opportunities for the rip-off artists in the securities sales industry to continue to cheat their customers.
The proposed rules are a step-backaward from the fiduciary responsibility rules presented a few years ago. Want to drain the swamp and end corruption? Getting the financial industry to move towards honesty would be a major step.
Tony Greiner
Portland Oregon