Thomas Ren: BDC Complaint Against Bull & Bear Financial Advisor

Roaring River, North Carolina financial advisor Thomas Ren (CRD# 2729198) recently received an investor complaint alleging six-figure damages. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records show that he is a broker and an investment advisor with Crown Capital Securities, doing business as Bull & Bear Financial Outfitters.

Mr. Ren’s BrokerCheck report discloses one recent investor complaint. Filed in June 2022, it alleges that as a representative of Crown Capital Securities, he performed insufficient due diligence and recommended unsuitable investments in a non-traded business development company (BDC) and other alternative investments. The pending complaint alleges damages of $100,000.

Investors should be aware that non-traded or private business development companies, like other non-traded funds, are often highly illiquid and risky products. In 2016 the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority warned investors to take care when weighing investments in non-traded BDCs, explaining that they expose investors “to high commissions and fees, illiquidity risks and uncertainty regarding the time-period BDCs will hold funds before they are invested.” Brokers and investment advisors who recommend unsuitable non-traded BDCs may be held liable for damages in the event of losses and/or subject to disciplinary action by FINRA, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and/or state securities regulators.

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Thomas Ren holds 26 years of securities industry experience. Based in Roaring River, North Carolina, he has been a broker and an investment advisor with Crown Capital Securities since 2016, doing business as Bull & Bear Financial Outfitters. His past registrations include Securities America (Littleton, Colorado; 2014-2015), Sunset Financial Services (Littleton, Colorado; 2007-2014), American Portfolios Financial Services (2007), United Securities Alliance (Littleton, Colorado; 2003-2007), FFP Securities (Chesterfield, Missouri; 1998-2003), and Washington Square Securities (Windsor, Connecticut; 1996-1998). His credentials include the passage of six securities industry qualifying exams: the Investment Company Products/Variable Contracts Representative Examination, or Series 6; the Direct Participation Programs Representative Examination, or Series 22; the General Securities Representative Examination, or Series 7; the Securities Industry Essentials Examination, or SIE; the Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination, or Series 63; and the Uniform Investment Adviser Law Examination, or Series 65. He is licensed in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Nebraska, New Mexico, and North Carolina. (Information current as of December 9, 2022.)

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