John Girgis: FINRA Bars Garden State, Ex-Worden Advisor

Red Bank, New Jersey financial advisor John Girgis (CRD# 5021526) was recently sanctioned and suspended in connection with alleged rule violations. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records show that he is registered as a broker and an investment advisor with Garden State Securities and Garden State Investment Advisory Services, respectively, having previously been registered with Worden Capital and SW Financial.

A Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent (No. 2019060753512) describes FINRA’s disciplinary action against Mr. Girgis. Filed in September 2025, it details findings that he refused to cooperate with an investigation his “outside business activities and trading activities in his Worden Capital and SW Financial customers’ accounts.” According to the letter, FINRA sent him a request to provide on-the-record testimony, but he indicated via counsel that he would not appear for such. FINRA found that his refusal constituted violations of FINRA Rule 8210 and Rule 2010. As a result ,it barred him from associating with any member firm in any capacity.

Mr. Girgis’s BrokerCheck report discloses two investor complaints. One of them, filed in 2022, alleged that as a representative of Worden Capital Management, he churned investments, charged excessive commissions, engaged in unauthorized trading, acted negligently, breached contract, and committed fraud. In 2023 the complaint reached a settlement of $14,999.

In a statement included with the disclosure, Mr. Girgis denied any wrongdoing. “This is a mass claim filed by over 50 unrelated customers who were solicited by the notorious non-attorney group CSAG, which promises recoveries to unsuspecting investors and then extorts money out of innocent brokers and their firms by filing frivolous claims and trying to force settlements in order to avoid expensive litigation,” he wrote in part. “These are false claims, and I will seek all damages and costs as a result of having to unnecessarily defend them.”

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, John Girgis holds 19 years of securities industry experience. Based in Red Bank, New Jersey, he has been registered as a broker with Garden State Securities since 2024 and an investment advisor with Garden State Investment Advisory Services since 2023. His past registrations include SW Financial, Worden Capital Management, Legend Securities, Joseph Gunnar & Company, Brookstone Securities, JP Turner & Company, and Gunnallen Financial. His credentials include the passage of five securities industry qualifying exams: the Uniform Investment Adviser Law Examination, or Series 65; the Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination, or Series 63; the Securities Industry Essentials Examination, or SIE; the General Securities Representative Examination, or Series 7; and the Investment Banking Registered Representative Examination, or Series 79TO. He has been barred by FINRA. (Information current as of October 1, 2025.)

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