FINRA Fines Credit Suisse $4.5M; Merrill Lynch $3M - Financial Planning

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has hit Credit Suisse Securities LLC with a $4.5 million fine and Merrill Lynch with a $3 million fine for not properly representing data and supervising the residential subprime mortgage securitizations they sold.
The fines, which were announced by independent regulator FINRA on Thursday, were for improper handling that took place at the firms in 2006 and 2007. Each firm’s violation prevented certain investors from adequately understanding the nuances of residential subprime mortgage securities (RMBS), according to FINRA’s investigation.
RMBS are subject to certain disclosure rules when they are sold. Firms are required to provide investors with past delinquency rates for similar financial products. They are also required to tell investors how they calculated those delinquency rates.
Both Credit Suisse and Merrill Lynch failed to adequately follow those rules, according to FINRA.