It's hilarious that traditional brokerages are actually upset at how online brokerage ads portray them. Perhaps we should look at the following news from just over a year ago and re-strategize the way we portray traditional brokers?
It's worth noting that to date, as far as I know, the olbs have NOT experienced similar problems. The worst problem for consumers seems to be overburdened tech structures resulting in outages, phone waits, stalled orders, etc.
caller.com
Tuesday, Jan. 12, 1999
SEC fines 28 firms $26 million in price-fixing case
PaineWebber Inc., J.P. Morgan & Co., Merrill Lynch & Co. among companies involved
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Closing a 5-year-old case in which big Wall Street firms were accused of cheating investors out of billions of dollars, federal regulators are fining 28 brokerages more than $26 million for alleged price-fixing on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The Securities and Exchange Commission has been negotiating the industrywide settlement with the brokerage firms for months. The agreement announced Monday involves many of Wall Street's biggest names, including PaineWebber Inc., J.P. Morgan & Co. and Merrill Lynch & Co. The case stretches back to 1994, when the SEC and the Justice Department alleged that major dealers on the electronic Nasdaq market conspired in a form of price-fixing that cost ordinary investors billions of dollars on their stock trades. Under the settlement, the brokerage firms with the most alleged violations agreed to pay higher fines. In addition to $26.3 million in civil fines, the firms also agreed to pay back alleged illegal profits totaling $791,525.
The SEC also brought civil charges against 51 individual traders for the brokerage firms, temporarily suspending them from the securities business. The brokerage firms and the traders, who agreed to the sanctions, neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing. The charges against the traders "would send a very strong message on the Street that you cannot hide under cover of your" brokerage firm, said Robert Skirnick, a securities attorney. Skirnick represented investors who sued the brokerages in a 1994 class action and won $910 million from 30 firms in a settlement a year ago - the largest ever for such a civil antitrust suit. The settlement also requires the firms to improve their trading policies andprocedures, SEC officials said.
Among those penalized were PaineWebber, fined $6.3 million; J.P. Morgan, fined $1.27 million and ordered to repay $42,218 in allegedly illegal profits; Prudential Securities Inc., fined $1 million and ordered to repay $1,361; Salomon Smith Barney Inc., fined $995,000 and ordered to repay $27,988; Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co., fined $350,000 and ordered to repay $4,170; and Merrill Lynch, fined $472,500. Brokerage firms involved in the settlement also include Bear Stearns & Co. Inc.; Cantor Fitzgerald & Co.; S.G. Cowen Securities Corp.; CS First Boston Corp.; Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corp.; Gruntal & Co.; Hambrecht & Quist; Herzog, Heine, Geduld Inc.; Jefferies & Co. Inc.; Legg Mason Wood Walker Inc.; Lehman Brothers Inc.; Mayer & Schweitzer Inc.; Olde Discount Corp.; CIBC Oppenheimer Corp.; Piper Jaffray Inc.; Raymond James & Associates Inc.; Robinson-Humphrey Co.; Sherwood Securities Corp.; Spear, Leeds & Kellogg; Tucker Anthony Inc. and Warburg Dillon Read.
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