The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is presently investigating the possible misconduct of former securities broker Michael Kamperman. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, Michael Kamperman has been the subject of multiple customer disputes.
Michael Kamperman operated most recently as a Texas based securities broker. He worked in the securities industry for twenty-seven years. During his career, he was registered with five different securities firms. He is no longer working as a registered securities broker in any fashion.
His Registrations
- Shearson Lehman Hutton (1989-1990)
- Rotan Mosle Inc. (1990-1991)
- UBS Financial Services (1991-2005)
- Prospera Financial Services (2005-2014)
- HD Vest Investment Services (2014-2017)
The Allegations
- In October 1998, a customer alleged that Michael Kamperman executed unauthorized and excessive trades, made unsuitable investment recommendations, made material misrepresentations, and failed to conduct adequate due diligence. This case was settled for $65,000 in damages.
- In September 2007, a customer alleged that Michael Kamperman mismanaged their account, executed frequent trades, and recommended unsuitable securities.
- In June 2016, customers alleged that Michael Kamperman recommended highly unsuitable investments and over-concentrated their account in said securities. They also alleged that they were not informed of the associated risks with these investment products and that Michael Kamperman breached his fiduciary duty and breached contract. This case was settled for $320,000 in damages.
- In June 2019, Michael Kamperman was officially sanctioned by FINRA. The findings in this matter state that Michael Kamperman liquidated multiple customers’ retirement assets to purchase highly speculative energy sector securities. He also allegedly recommended one customer purchase and hold a leveraged inverse ETN for a period of 16 months–despite the fact that these products are supposed to be bought and sold within a single trading day. These customers suffered a total of $407,000 in losses due to Kamperman’s alleged actions. Following these alleged actions, Michael Kamperman was fined $20,000 and suspended from acting as a securities broker in any fashion for a period of 18 months.
What Does This Mean?
Energy sector securities can be very unsuitable for investors. This is true for both privately traded limited partnerships and publicly traded master limited partnerships. The energy market can be incredibly volatile, which can lead to shifting oil and gas prices. This greatly affects the demand for these energy sources which can cause a significant decline in the energy investment. Over-concentrating a customer’s account in these types of investments, whether publicly or privately traded, is incredibly unsuitable for the account holder.
It is also never a good idea to liquidate retirement assets like IRA’s and 401(k)s. These accounts were specifically designated for an individual to save money that can act as income during their retirement. Liquidating these assets to purchase high risk energy products not only subjects the investors to multiple fees, but also causes them to take significant risks with their retirement assets that can end with the customer losing everything they saved.
Oakes & Fosher Can Help
Many investors are unaware of the legal recourse available to them after losing money due to securities broker fraud and/or negligence. The truth is that investors who have lost money in this fashion may actually be entitled to damages.
Oakes & Fosher dedicates its entire legal practice to helping investors across the nation. If you, or someone you know, have lost money investing with Michael Kamperman, please contact Oakes & Fosher for a free and private consultation. Oakes & Fosher handles cases on a contingency basis, which means there are no fees charged unless we collect for you.
