The company permitted its CEO, Anthony Ottimo, to serve as a supervisor after being barred from acting in the same capacity by the SEC in June 2008.
Further the US independent financial regulator barred Ottimo from the securities industry and disqualified the firm’s former President, Thomas Giugliano, from acting in a principal capacity, suspended him from the securities industry for one year as well as imposed $150,000 in penalty.
The firm along with its two executives breached numerous NASD/FINRA and SEC rules and federal securities laws, such as anti-money laundering (AML) violations, net capital deficiencies and widespread reporting failures, claims FINRA.
During the period 2008 to 2011, the company misrepresented to FINRA that Ottimo was no longer acting as EKN’s CEO, as a principal or as a supervisor, while he secretly served in the positions.
The regulatory body also found that as CEO, Ottimo supervised other EKN personnel, negotiated and executed agreements, controlled its finances, retained signatory authority over its bank accounts, and represented himself as EKN’s CEO.
In settling the aforementioned charges, EKN, Ottimo and Giugliano neither admitted nor denied the charges, but consented to FINRA’s findings.
