The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has barred a former Morgan Stanley rep in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after four clients said he prompted them to transfer funds for investments he never made. Four of the clients are seeking $860,000 in damages.
Morgan Stanley fired the rep, Ron Ernest Filoramo, at the end of May after the allegations surfaced that he had fraudulently induced clients to move their money.
“Mr. Filoramo’s employment was terminated in May and we reported the matter to law enforcement,” said a Morgan Stanley spokesperson. “There are a limited number of clients impacted and we are working with them to address their claims.”
According to the Filoramo’s BrokerCheck page, four clients came forward this year with similar claims that Filoramo had prompted them to move funds for outside investments that never came to pass. The largest claim, made by a client who said their funds were transferred from 2014 to 2019, was for $335,850 in damages. Another client was claiming $290,000 for tranfers made from 2016 to 2018. The total of the four claims is almost $860,000.
Filoramo’s listed phone numbers in the Fort Lauderdale area were disconnected and he could not be reached for comment. Finra barred him after he failed to provide documents and information, and after he said, through his legal counsel, that he would not cooperate with Finra’s investigation into the matter.
According to BrokerCheck, Filoramo had worked at Morgan Stanley since 2011. Before that he logged time at other well-known firms, including Wells Fargo, UBS and Ladenburg Thalmann after becoming a general securities representative in 1999.
Morgan Stanley’s spokesperson said the firm is “strongly committed to the protection of client assets, and to act quickly when allegations of this nature are discovered.”