Thomas Cleary Suspended; Allegedly Failed to Disclose Executor Status

Thomas Cleary (CRD #: 2221383), an investment adviser registered with CIC Wealth, is facing a FINRA fine and suspension, according to his BrokerCheck record, accessed on August 24, 2021. Before his suspension, he was also a registered broker with Purshe Kaplan Sterling Investments.

On June 8, 2021, Thomas Cleary entered into an Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent agreement in which he consented to the findings that he had engaged in an outside business activity when he acted as an executor of one of his customer’s estates. Brokers are not supposed to engage in outside business activities without providing written notice to their firm, which Thomas Cleary allegedly did not do.

Allegedly, Thomas Cleary had a reasonable expectation of compensation for his help preparing his investor’s will and serving as the executor. Furthermore, Cleary allegedly stated on a firm compliance questionnaire that he was not named as an executor on a customer’s estate.

Thomas Cleary allegedly de-linked annuities from the firm after he inherited them so that the firm would not receive a notification when Cleary terminated the policies. He allegedly took these steps to conceal his beneficiary status from the firm.

As part of the terms of the AWC, Thomas Cleary consented to a $10,000 fine and a one-year suspension. You can read a copy of the AWC here.

Virginia State Regulatory Action

Thomas Cleary is the subject of a regulatory action in Virginia for the same misconduct.

On August 25, 2021, Thomas Cleary paid Virginia a fine of $35,000 to settle allegations that he violated his firm’s policies by failing to notify his firm that he was a client’s beneficiary.

Employment Disclosure

On September 3, 2019, RBC Capital Markets permitted Thomas Cleary to voluntarily resign following allegations that he “failed to disclose a preexisting fiduciary relationship.”

Thomas Cleary Background Information

Thomas Cleary has passed the following exams:

• Series 65 Uniform Investment Adviser Law Examination
• Series 63 Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination
• Securities Industry Essentials Examination
• Series 31 Futures Managed Funds Examination
• Series 7 General Securities Representative Examination
• Series 6 Investment Company Products/ Variable Contracts Representative Examination

Thomas Cleary has worked for the following firms:

• Purshe-Kaplan Sterling Investment (CRD #: 35747)
• RBC Capital Markets (CRD #: 31194)
• UBS Financial Services (CRD #: 8174)
• Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (CRD #: 149777)
• CitiGroup Global Markets (CRD #: 7059)
• SunTrust Investment Services (CRD #: 17499)
• LM Financial Partners (CRD #: 30958)
• Crestar Securities Corporation (CRD #: 17464)
• MML Investors Services (CRD #: 10409)

Kurta Law Can Help

If you worked with Thomas Cleary and you have concerns about your investments, contact Kurta Law today. Call 877-600-0098 or email info@kurtalawfirm.com.