Brad Katzer: Lake Financial Advisor Faced Trading Complaint

A recent, denied investor complaint against Port Washington, Wisconsin financial advisor Brad Katzer (CRD# 6627091) alleged that he made excessive trades. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records show that he is registered as a broker and an investment advisor with Equitable Advisors, doing business as Lake Financial.

Mr. Katzer’s BrokerCheck report discloses one investor complaint. Filed in April 2026, it alleged that as a representative of Equitable Advisors, he misrepresented fees, recommended unsuitable stock investments, and participated in excessive trading. The complaint alleged unspecified damages and was denied by the firm. In a statement included with the disclosure, he wrote that “The firm found no basis to the customer’s complaint.”

In 2020 FINRA released an investor resource that defined excessive trading as “the situation where a broker makes a large number of trades in a customer’s account not to benefit the customer but to generate commissions for the broker.” In more severe cases, known as churning, a broker makes excessive transactions in the client’s account “with either an intent to defraud or with reckless disregard for the customer’s interests.” Additional information on potential red flags indicating excessive trading can be found via FINRA. To catch signs of such conduct, the regulator advises investors to review their account documents for any discrepancies between the information recorded and the information provided to the broker; to monitor trade confirmations and account statements, and contact their broker regarding any potential unauthorized transactions, high-volume activity, or excessive fees or commissions; and to carefully question their representatives about any potential excessive trading.

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Brad Katzer holds nine years of securities industry experience. Based in Port Washington, Wisconsin, he has been registered as a broker and an investment advisor with Equitable Advisors since 2017 and 2018, respectively, doing business as Lake Financial. His past registrations include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services and Voya Financial Advisors. His credentials include the passage of three securities industry qualifying exams: the Securities Industry Essentials Examination, or SIE; the Uniform Combined State Law Examination, or Series 66; and the General Securities Representative Examination, or Series 7. He is licensed in Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin. (Information current as of May 19, 2026.)

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