By 2015, the value of almost every Oakdale client account had become heavily dependent on the performance of energy-related investments, the complaint said. Soon after, the issuers of many of the energy-related investments filed for bankruptcy or lost substantial value because of a downturn in energy prices.
“Advisors need to be acting in the best interests of their clients, particularly when their clients are reaching retirement age and cannot afford to take risks with their hard-earned savings,” Galvin said in a statement. “This case is an example of how a one-size-fits-all approach to investors can be harmful.”
The Securities Division is seeking to have Daly and O’Keeffe fined and censured, and to have Daly permanently barred from the securities industry in Massachusetts. The division is also asking that the advisors disgorge all profits from the alleged wrongdoing and provide restitution to investors for their losses.