Alex Herrera: FINRA Bars Coral Gables Financial Advisor

A disciplinary action taken by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority against former Coral Gables, Florida broker and investment advisor Alex Herrera (CRD# 3204779) barred him after finding he failed to provide documents and information requested as part of its investigation into possible undisclosed outside business activities and private securities transactions. A former representative of UBS Financial Services, Herrera was barred from acting as a broker or otherwise associating with a broker-dealer firm.

According to a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (No. 2018058446601) dated September 2018, Alex Herrera was registered with UBS Financial Services from 2012 until 2018, when the firm reported his voluntary resignation “while under review after advising management he had engaged in financial and real estate relationships with longstanding clients” for which he did not receive the firm’s prior approval. FINRA sent him a request on May 17, 2018 for written information connected to its investigation into his potential involvement in private securities transactions and undisclosed outside business activities. When he declined to respond to the request by May 31, 2018, FINRA sent a second request on June 6, 2018, setting a deadline of June 13, 2018. Herrera indicated to FINRA through counsel on June 6, 2018 and July 6, 2018 that he would not produce the information FINRA requested at any time. FINRA found that this refusal constituted violations of FINRA Rules 8210 and 2010. As a result of the foregoing alleged conduct, Alex Herrera was barred from associating with any FINRA member in any capacity.

Alex Herrera’s disclosure records also list two settled or pending customer complaints against him. A complaint filed in 2019, for instance, alleged that he transferred his client’s money into an account he managed; the complaint reached a settlement of $137,500. And a pending 2018 complaint alleges that as a representative of UBS Financial Services, he exercised discretion improperly, traded investments “for his own financial gain,” and participated in “unapproved outside financial transactions [with the claimants] in connection with which he stole their money.” The complaint alleges damages of $7,000,000.

Alex Herrera is currently not registered as a broker or investment advisor. His employment history includes UBS Financial Services in Coral Gables, Florida; HSBC Securities in Coral Gables, Florida; Atlas One Financial Group in Miami, Florida; Citicorp Investment Services in Long Island City, New York; and MML Investors Services in Springfield, Massachusetts. He currently holds zero state licenses and has passed five securities industry qualification examinations.