LPL Financial has been fined $2.75 million by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority for failures in its complaint-reporting and anti-money-laundering program spanning more than three years.

LPL failed to file or amend registered representatives’ Forms U4 or U5 to disclose dozens of reportable customer complaints, Finra said in a news release Tuesday. The fine was the result of a settlement in which LPL neither admitted to nor denied the charges, Finra said.

"LPL too narrowly interpreted the requirement that a complaint contain 'a claim for compensatory damages of $5,000 or more' to be reported," the regulatory organization said. "LPL incorrectly construed this phrase to mean that the firm was not required to report any complaint that did not expressly request compensation, even when the customer alleged a sales practice violation that caused him or her a loss of $5,000 or more, and the complaint, when viewed as a whole, made clear that the customer was seeking compensation."

LPL, the nation's largest independent broker-dealer, was also found to have failed to investigate multiple attempts to gain unauthorized access to electronic systems -- events that should have resulted in the filing of suspicious activity reports (SARs), Finra said.

In total, Finra said, LPL failed to file more than 400 SARs, mainly due to improper guidance given to employees responsible for anti-money-laundering (AML) reporting.

“This case highlights Finra's persistent focus on ensuring that firms file with the government and with Finra information critical to the protection of investors and the public," said Susan Schroeder, executive vice president in Finra's Department of Enforcement.

In a statement published on the company's website, LPL said no customers sustained losses as a result of the incidents.

"The AML fine is specific to the filing of Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR) for incidents involving the company’s analysis of publicly available risk information and attempted email compromises. There was no customer loss related to these incidents," the company said.

“We’ve made significant investments to enhance our AML program at LPL,"  Michelle Oroschakoff, managing director and chief legal officer at LPL Financial, said in a prepared statement. "We’re pleased that Finra noted our ‘extraordinary cooperation’ in identifying, self-reporting, investigating and remediating these issues thoroughly and promptly.”