A Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA) hearing panel has permanently barred a Brampton, Ontario dealing representative, Douglas Tuitakalai, formerly of Investors Group Financial Services Inc., after Tuitakalai admitted he engaged in personal financial dealings with a client and unapproved outside business activity.
He also admitted to hampering the MFDA’s investigation into his conduct by withholding documentation and information.
Registered with Investors Group from September 2013 until February 2018, Tuitakalai is not currently registered in the securities industry in any capacity.
According to the MFDA’s settlement agreement, Tuitakalai and members of his family, in early 2017, entered into agreements to purchase two condominium units in a building that was under construction. Around the same time, he conducted a personal financial review and gathered Know Your Client (KYC) information about a would-be client, who did not open investment accounts at the time, but who did tell Tuitakalai that she had an interest in purchasing real estate.
Shortly after the meeting, the client then told Tuitakalai that she was interested in purchasing a unit in the same building. At the time, Tuitakalai and his family members were no longer interested in completing their purchase and the former representative offered to assign the purchase and sale for the two units in exchange for a $17,000 payment he claimed would pay the assignment and legal fees required to complete the transfer.
In May that year the would-be client then opened accounts with the representative and became an Investors Group client. In October, Tuitakalai received a $17,000 bank draft from the client, in accordance with their agreement to purchase the condominium units. One month later, the client then complained to Investors Group that she had given her advisor $17,000 for a real estate deal that she no longer wished to proceed with.
In September of the same year, Tuitakalai also entered into a partnership agreement with a third party to purchase, renovate and re-sell a real estate property – activity that he did not disclose to his firm. When MFDA staff commenced an investigation the following year, Tuitakalai attended one interview and provided a partial response to a request for information from MFDA staff, but ignored multiple follow-up emails and letters delivered by process servers.
In settling with the MFDA, Tuitakalai, in addition to being banned from working in any capacity with any MFDA member firm, must also pay a fine in the amount of $40,000 and costs totalling $5,000.
