Richard Mireles

Attorneys at ChapmanAlbin are investigating the actions of Richard Mireles, a General Securities Principal, following a settlement with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Mireles has been sanctioned for failing to properly supervise a registered representative under his watch, leading to excessive trading in client accounts and significant financial losses.

Between July 2020 and December 2022, Mireles failed to adequately address red flags raised by his team about excessive trading conducted by a registered representative at Independent Financial Group, LLC (IFG). Despite multiple alerts about high-volume, high-cost trades being placed in client accounts—many of which belonged to senior customers—Mireles took no meaningful action to investigate or stop the behavior. Instead, he instructed lower-level supervisors to conduct only trade-by-trade assessments, rather than reviewing the full series of trades for potential excessive trading.

The registered representative’s excessive trading caused severe financial harm to at least five clients, who collectively paid more than $2.2 million in trading costs and suffered realized losses of over $2.2 million. One case involved a 77-year-old retiree with a capital preservation objective, whose account was subject to an annualized cost-to-equity ratio of 20.3%, leading to over $490,000 in trading costs and $550,000 in realized losses. Another case involved the trust account of an 88-year-old retiree, which incurred trading costs exceeding $650,000 and realized losses of more than $560,000.

As a result of his supervisory failures, Mireles has agreed to a four-month suspension from acting in any principal capacity within FINRA and has been fined $5,000. During this suspension, he will be subject to statutory disqualification, meaning he cannot act as a supervisor for any FINRA member firm.

If you or someone you know has been affected by excessive trading or improper supervision involving Richard Mireles or Independent Financial Group, LLC, contact ChapmanAlbin today. Our experienced attorneys can help you recover your losses. We offer free consultations to evaluate your case and explore your legal options.