Securities Lawyers Blog
The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that Broker Vanessa Sopke (Sopke), previously employed by Cetera Investment Services LLC has been subject to at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Sopke’s most recent customer complaint alleges that Sopke recommended unsuitable investments in structured products and makes allegations concerning misconduct relating to the handling of the customer’s accounts.
FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $5,000.00 on July 23, 2025.
The clients allege misrepresentation in the purchase of two structured products.
Marketlinked data drives the performance of structured products, which are a type of derivative. A structured product usually derives its market risk exposure from a specific reference source. It can originate from a single security, a group of securities such as a market index, commodities, interest rates, or a portfolio of real estate loans. The variety of products that can be structured demonstrates the difficulty in formulating a single unified definition of a structured product.
Compared to traditional debt or equity instruments, structured products generally yield inferior risk/return profiles, as the issuing brokerage firms—primarily large banks—profit from the spread between investor payouts and the earnings from issuing structured notes, after accounting for broker commissions and fees. Most investors may struggle to grasp the benefits of these investments or accurately assess the likelihood of gains and losses due to their complexity. Some brokers mislead clients by portraying these investments as fixed income or bond-like assets that return capital. Given the high risk of loss relative to corporate debt and other fixed-income options, structured products are generally unsuitable as fixed-income alternatives.
Recently, firms have begun selling redeemable structured notes often linked to a single investment or a basket of investments. Structured products connected to individual securities demonstrate significant risk without delivering substantial rewards. Our firm assessed a structured note linked to Peloton’s stock that provided investors with 1.0625% interest per month (12.75% annually) and another note tied to Zillow’s stock, offering a 12% annual interest paid monthly, conditional on the stock prices maintaining a level above the referenced value. The interest payment would be fully canceled only if both stocks suffered a roughly 40% decline in value. In addition, if the stocks lost more than approximately 40% of their value then the investor would also lose their corresponding principal based upon the performance of the stocks and could lose their entire investment. Further, the notes were callable and could be cancelled by the sponsor.
These products are very high risk and low reward propositions because the investor can only profit at most by 12-12.75% over the course of one year. Even if Peloton or Zillow doubled in value all the investor could achieve would be the interest payment as their profit and none of the price appreciation. Meanwhile the maximum loss is 100% of the investment if the stocks fell severely. Accordingly, the investor takes dramatic downside risks associated with the volatile stocks while having no chance to participate in the success of the stock.
According to newsources, a study revealed that 7.3% of financial advisors had a customer complaint on their record when records from 2005 to 2015 were examined. Brokers must publicly disclose reportable events on their BrokerCheck reports that include customer complaints, IRS tax liens, judgments, investigations, terminations, and criminal cases.
Sopke has been in the securities industry for more than 13 years. Sopke has been registered as a Broker with Cetera Investment Services LLC since 2015.
Investors who have suffered losses are encouraged to contact us at (800) 810-4262 for consultation. At Gana Weinstein LLP, our attorneys are experienced representing investors who have suffered securities losses due to the mishandling of their accounts. Claims may be brought in securities arbitration before FINRA. Our consultations are free of charge and the firm is only compensated if you recover.