UnBo Chung Subject of SEC Regulatory Action and Civil Suit

UnBo “Bob” Chung (CRD #: 6208569), a broker registered with Arete Wealth Management, is involved in an SEC civil suit, according to his BrokerCheck record, accessed on February 12, 2025. Investors may have also engaged his services through Arete Wealth Advisors. Keep reading for details on his alleged conduct as a broker.

SEC Regulatory Action

On January 17, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission initiated a regulatory action against Bob Chung which allegedly concerns certain liability releases. According to his detailed BrokerCheck report, this action seeks censure and civil fines. This regulatory action is currently pending.

SEC Civil Suit

On January 17, 2025, the SEC filed a civil complaint against Bob Chung, Arete Wealth Management and Arete Wealth Advisors (collectively, “Arete”), and Joey Miller, Jeffrey Larson, and Randall Larson (“the brokers”).

Allegations of Selling Away

The complaint alleges that Joey Miller and the Larson brothers engaged in selling away, soliciting investors to purchase stock in Zona Energy, Inc. without Arete’s approval or oversight.

Joey Miller and Jeffrey Larson allegedly entered into an agreement to raise money for Zona Energy in exchange for discounted shares of the company, and failed to disclose this to prospective investors.

Bob Chung allegedly served as Arete’s general counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, and at one point received an email alleging that Zona Energy’s control person was a convicted felon who had previously served time in prison for conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

Nonetheless, the brokers allegedly continued to facilitate investments in Zona Energy. Clients of Arete and other investors allegedly invested over $8.5 million in the company.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the SEC would later file civil and criminal charges against this control person and others, alleging that Zona Energy was an illegitimate company and that insiders had misappropriated investor funds.

At the same time, FINRA allegedly emailed Bob Chung with a request for information on whether Arete brokers had raised funds for Zona Energy, naming the other defendants.

Allegations Involving Liability Releases

Arete’s CEO allegedly demanded that the brokers obtain liability releases from their clients who had invested in Zona Energy. Bob Chung was allegedly chosen to oversee this process, and worked with these brokers’ counsel.

He allegedly helped the brokers obtain broad liability releases from many of their clients, who received payments in return that ranged from a single dollar to $5,000—significantly less than what they had invested.

The SEC alleges that Bob Chung and these brokers knew, or at least negligently disregarded, that these liability releases falsely claimed that investors understood that the brokers had not recommended investments in Zona Energy, and that they were not acting as financial advisers when making those recommendations.

The releases also failed to disclose that Joey Miller and Jeffrey Larson had received shares in Zona Energy in return for raising funds.

The SEC alleges that Arete Wealth Advisors, through Bob Chung, failed to maintain adequate compliance policies and procedures. Further, they allegedly failed to conduct required annual reviews of the firm’s compliance policies for nearly four years despite the SEC warning Bob Chung of these deficiencies.

According to Bob Chung’s detailed BrokerCheck report, the SEC alleges that he aided and abetted violations by Arete Wealth Advisors, Joey Miller, Jeffrey Larson, and/or Randall Larson of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 Sections 206(1) and (2); and Arete Wealth Advisors’ violations of Section 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act and Rule 206(4)-7 thereunder.

This civil complaint is currently pending.

Investment Advisers Act of 1940

Section 206 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 prohibits the use of fraudulent and deceptive schemes or practices.

Rule 206(4)-7 requires investment advisers to establish and enforce policies and procedures to prevent violation of the Investment Advisers Act, conduct annual reviews of these policies and procedures, and appoint a chief compliance officer.

Investor Dispute

On November 18, 2024, an investor alleged that Bob Chung facilitated the sale of unsuitable investments. This dispute is currently pending.

FINRA Rule 2111

FINRA Rule 2111 requires brokers to take into account investors’ financial goals when recommending investments. Brokers must examine the information contained in an investor’s profile, such as their tax status, risk tolerance, and overall financial situation.

Investors who rely on brokers for recommendations may be able to recover their losses by seeking out FINRA arbitration.

Background Information

Bob Chung has passed the following exams:

• Compliance Officer Examination – Series 14
• General Securities Principal Examination – Series 24
• Securities Industry Essentials Examination – SIE
• Uniform Combined State Law Examination – Series 66

Bob Chung is a registered broker in eight states as well as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. He is also a registered investment adviser in Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, and Massachusetts.

He has also worked for Center Street Securities (CRD#:26898) and Center Street Advisors (CRD#:169329).

Kurta Law Can Help

If you worked with UnBo “Bob” Chung and you have concerns about your investments, please contact us today at 877-600-0098 or info@kurtalawfirm.com for a free consultation.

For over 20 years, Kurta Law has advocated on behalf of investors who want to recover their investment losses from brokers and brokerage firms. Kurta Law is a nationally recognized law firm that exclusively represents investors against brokers and brokerage firms on a contingency basis. This means that the firm only earns a fee if our securities attorneys recover money on your behalf.