A Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization hearing panel has fined Vikram Jindal $5,000, after Jindal admitted he allowed his licensed assistant to conduct trading in provinces where the assistant was not registered.
Jindal is registered in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and as a dealing representative in Ontario with Quadrus Investment Services Ltd. since November 2001. Between July 2017 and September 2021, his licensed assistant would, from time to time, communicate with Jindal’s clients to obtain and process trading instructions under the London, Ontario representative’s code (the assistant did not have a personal representative code), for clients in provinces where the assistant was not registered.
According to the CIRO settlement agreement, the regulator’s position is that Jindal knew or ought to have known that EF, Jindal’s assistant, was only permitted to engaged in registerable activity for clients who resided in provinces where EF was registered.
All told, an October 2021 file review found 31 transactions completed for 15 different clients who resided in provinces other than Ontario where the assistant was registered. When the files were discovered by Quadrus, the firm issued a disciplinary letter and placed Jindal under close supervision, making him pay an administrative fee of $400 per month. Jindal ultimately paid $2,400 to the member firm.
In addition to the $5,000 fine, Jindal was assessed CIRO’s costs in the amount of $2,500.
