The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has suspended a former Securities America financial advisor. Kimberly E. Nuessmann is suspended from associating with FINRA members for 30 days and must pay a fine of $5,000 for impersonating a deceased relative who was a former client of the Advisor Group firm.
Nuessmann completed a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) in which she consented to the imposition of FINRA's sanctions. According to ThinkAdvisor, Securities America filed a Form U5 Uniform Termination Notice stating that Nuessmann was terminated for failure to disclose accurate information regarding a relative who was a client during an operational inquiry from the home office.
Nuessmann submitted a distribution request to Securities America to transfer the proceeds of her dead relative's IRA account to an account controlled by two of Nuessmann's other relatives. According to FINRA, the firm was unaware that the client was deceased. Nuessmann impersonated the deceased customer and verified the request. Nuessmann's actions represented a violation of FINRA Rule 2010. According to BrokerCheck, she is no longer a registered representative.
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