The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has barred a Texas advisor for selling away from his firm, saying he engaged in sales of almost $2 million in promissory notes without telling his broker-dealer about it.

Finra said Tuesday that it had barred Leslie Don Jackson, an advisor with the Momentum Independent Network since 1991. He worked in Dallas.

Jackson’s lawyer said he would not comment and Jackson himself could not be reached through the phone number on his website. A call to Hilltop Securities, which is listed as Momentum’s holding company, was not returned.

According to Finra, between February 2018 and August 2022 Jackson participated in the sale of promissory notes for companies that supposedly provided financing to construction companies. These private securities transactions added up to $1,975,000.

“Jackson recommended the investments to five investors, including one family member, who ultimately purchased an aggregate $1,475,000 of the issuers’ promissory notes,” Finra said in its letter announcing Jackson’s removal from the industry. “Three of the investors were firm customers. Jackson also personally purchased notes totaling $500,000. The five investors and Jackson made a total of 19 investments in the promissory notes.” For his participation he received monthly payments from the issuers in what added up to 3% of each investment per year during the investments’ terms, Finra said.

His work included “telling the investors about the notes, answering questions about the investments, helping the investors complete the subscription documents, and collecting the payments for the investments to provide to the issuers,” Finra said.

Finra added that Jackson did not tell Momentum about his involvement in the sale or purchase of the notes nor seek the firm’s approval. The firm’s rules required him to disclose private securities transactions. Momentum filed a U5 termination noticed in January of this year.

Finra Rule 3280 discusses private transactions outside the scope of business with member firms and the requirements that firms be alerted so they can approve these transactions. According to the agency, Jackson ran afoul of both that rule and Rule 2010, which requires members to “observe high standards of commercial honor and just and equitable principles of trade.”