MFDA Hearing Panel accepts settlement agreement with Steven Rethy

TORONTO, ON, Oct. 16, 2020 /CNW/ - A settlement hearing in the matter of Steven Jules Rethy ("Respondent") was held by electronic hearing on October 15, 2020 in Halifax, Nova Scotia before a three-member Hearing Panel of the Atlantic Regional Council of the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada ("MFDA").

The Hearing Panel accepted the settlement agreement dated October 15, 2020 ("Settlement Agreement") between Staff of the MFDA and the Respondent, as a consequence of which the following sanctions were imposed on the Respondent:

• a suspension from conducting securities related business in any capacity while in the employ of or associated with any MFDA Member for a period of five months;
• a fine in the amount of $10,000 ("Fine");
• costs in the amount of $5,000 ("Costs");
• payment of the Fine and Costs shall be made as follows:
• $5,000 (Fine) upon acceptance of the Settlement Agreement;
• $5,000 (Costs) upon acceptance of the Settlement Agreement; and
• $5,000 (Fine) by April 15, 2021;
• a permanent prohibition from engaging in any new leveraging activities with clients, including recommending or applying for additional investment loans for clients, which prohibition does not otherwise limit the servicing of clients with existing leverage; and
• shall in the future comply with MFDA Rule 2.1.1.

In the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent admitted that in or about June 2010, he concealed from the Member that he had recommended that two clients borrow monies to invest, thus failing to abide by the terms and conditions regarding leveraging imposed on his registration and misleading the Member in response to its supervisory inquiries, contrary to MFDA Rule 2.1.1.

A copy of the Settlement Agreement is available on the MFDA website at www.mfda.ca. During the period described in the Settlement Agreement, the Respondent carried on business in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

The MFDA is the self-regulatory organization for Canadian mutual fund dealers, regulating the operations, standards of practice and business conduct of its Members and their approximately 81,000 Approved Persons with a mandate to protect investors and the public interest. For more information about the MFDA's complaint and enforcement processes, as well as links to 'Check an Advisor' and other Investor Tools, visit the For Investors page on the MFDA website.

SOURCE Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada