Delaware investment advisor suspended again for violations

A Delaware investment adviser with a long history of professional violations has been suspended once again, his third regulatory action in recent years.

On October 28, Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced that Robert Brandon Prettyman, former president of Summit Wealth Advisors, had been suspended for six months, barring him from working as an investment advisor. This suspension, which will run from October 7, 2024 to April 7, 2025, was imposed after investigators found that Prettyman continued to access former customers’ financial information without their consent during a previously imposed suspension.

Prettyman’s record in Delaware had been expunged as a penalty for professional misconduct, in which regulators alleged Prettyman provided false information during an investigation and acted outside standard industry practices.

The disciplinary action adds to a raft of sanctions imposed by state and professional regulators that have resulted in numerous suspensions and financial penalties against Prettyman.

breach of trust

The latest breach came to light when a former client suspected Prettyman was still accessing her financial information through the eMoney Advisory LLC portal, despite the end of their professional relationship and Prettyman’s dismissal as an investment advisor.

A Delaware Department of Justice Investor Protection Unit investigation confirmed that although Prettyman’s Delaware registration was suspended, his access to the eMoney portal remained active and continued to view former clients’ financial information.

In his statement, Jennings emphasized the limits governing investment advisors’ use of software in the context of a fiduciary relationship.

“Financial professionals should never view personal financial information when a client relationship is terminated, suspended or unregistered,” Jennings said.

Prettyman’s Delaware registration previously suspended After it was determined that he made “materially false and misleading statements” to Investor Protection Unit investigators in 2021.

Signature changes will result in a 1-month suspension and a $5,000 fine.

The unit initiated administrative proceedings against Prettyman in December 2021 based on allegations that he misrepresented the reason for his termination in a sworn statement by a former employer.

Accordingly A report from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or FINRA.Prettyman, the industry’s self-regulatory body for U.S. broker-dealers, allegedly reused customers’ signatures on documents for account openings and transactions between 2014 and 2019. In some cases, he used ink and correction fluid to change details such as signature dates before sending those documents to his employer, a brokerage firm in Horsham, Pennsylvania.

Although these actions were permitted and no customers complained, the report noted that these actions were a violation of regulatory standards. In July 2021, Prettyman entered into a consent agreement with FINRA; where he neither admitted nor denied the allegations, but agreed to accept a one-month suspension and a $5,000 fine.

New agreement leads to 30-month suspension and $60,000 fine

While Delaware’s Investor Protection Unit pursued the administrative matter in 2021, it received additional information that led to a new investigation into Prettyman. The investigation was investigating whether Prettyman provided consulting services while unregistered, made appropriate recommendations regarding annuities, breached fiduciary duties when attempting to move client assets, and attempted to evade Delaware registration requirements by obtaining a Florida driver’s license.

In June 2022, Prettyman was found by an administrative tribunal to have made materially false and misleading statements to the Unit. An agreement was reached in February 2023 to resolve both the administrative matter and the new investigation.

Prettyman agreed to pay a $60,000 fine and a two-and-a-half-year suspension from registration in Delaware for making false and misleading statements to the Investor Protection Unit.

Prettyman’s 30-month license suspension began on June 30, 2021, and was scheduled to end on December 31, 2023, according to the FINRA report. He was eligible to apply for conditional registration on January 1, 2024, provided that all conditions are met. The consent decree was fulfilled.

Prettyman’s professional backgroundFound in the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure database, it shows two terminations, one criminal count and three regulatory events.

Delaware residents can verify their financial advisor’s registration status and file a complaint through the Investor Protection Unit at: [email protected].

you can C.Contact Anitra Johnson: [email protected].

breach of trust

Signature changes will result in a 1-month suspension and a $5,000 fine.

New agreement leads to 30-month suspension and $60,000 fine

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