Securities Lawyers Blog
According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Steven Thornton (Thornton), currently associated with Centerpoint M & a Advisors, INC. / Efcg Transaction Services LLC / Compak Securities, INC. / Incline Advisors / the Spartan Group / Shorelineambrose Advisors, LLC / Mainspring Capital Management, LLC / Transitional Broker LLC / Lesko Securities INC. / Centerboard Securities, LLC / Avendus Capital, INC. / Marks Baughan Securities LLC / Capitala Securities, LLC / Equity Hill Capital, LLC / Mit Associates, LLC / Apexus Capital LLC / Fmi Capital Advisors, INC. / Arcstone Securities LLC / Private Placement Insurance Products, LLC / Valtus Capital Group, LLC / Innovation Capital, LLC / Tcfg Wealth Management, LLC / Lighthouse Capital Group, LLC / Portum Capital LLC / Augment Capital, LLC / Trinity Wealth Securities, L.l.c. / Kal Capital Markets LLC / Globalink Securities, INC. / Direct Realty Securities, INC. / Analyst Hub Securities, LLC / Wbb Securities, LLC / Bdo Capital Advisors, LLC / Exchangeright Securities, LLC / Wildridge Securities / Syndicated Capital, INC. / Nextrend Securities, INC. / Belzberg Capital / Tfa Securities, INC. / Pariter Securities, LLC / Bren Ventures LLC, has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Thornton recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.
FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $1,000,000.00 on March 21, 2026.
In September 2022, the [REDACTED] family sold their Brooklyn property and, seeking conservative investments, entrusted TCFG Wealth Management and its representative, Scott Offerman, with the proceeds; Offerman instead recommended investing $3.3 million (about 85% of their assets) in two high-risk, illiquid Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs) from Inspired Health Capital, misrepresenting them as low-risk and suitable for a 1031 exchange.???? Despite the [REDACTED] risk aversion, TCFG failed to conduct proper due diligence and overconcentrated their assets, exposing them to significant risks.?? By July 2025, Inspired Health Capital halted investor distributions amid SEC scrutiny, and in February 2026, filed for bankruptcy, making recovery of the [REDACTED] investment unlikely.? The claim alleges breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, negligent supervision, fraud, breach of contract, and securities law violations, seeking damages estimated between $1 million and $5 million.?? \<char_lb_r>\, \<char_lb_r>\, Thornton to be dismissed as he is not a Series 24 principal, has no supervisory responsibilities, does not supervise the rep, has never met the customer and was not involved in any part of the approval of the issuer&#39;s offering or the transactions in question.
In the financial industry advisors must meet the requirements of the SEC’s Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) in providing investment advice and services. Reg BI established a ‘best interest’ standard for brokerage firms and registered representatives. This standard applies when brokers make recommendations to retail customer for any securities transaction or investment strategy involving securities, including recommendations of types of accounts. This Reg BI standard of care applies to registered representatives making recommendations to customers in the purchase, sale, or exchange of securities or the implementation of investment strategies involving securities and non-securities. The rule also applies to the handling of opening accounts such as account transfers and types of accounts being recommended to be opened.
Another aspect of the care obligation is focusing on the client’s specific needs which brokers must reasonably understand through obtaining information for the client’s investment profile. In completing a customer’s investment profile the advisor should include information such as the investor’s investment time horizon; liquidity needs; risk tolerance; experience with various investment vehicles; investment objectives and financial goals; assets and debts including outside investment accounts; marital status; tax information; age; and other relevant information that may be individual to the investor that the advisor would need to know to properly render advice or provide services. The SEC has stated that Reg BI is drawn from fiduciary principles that are common to both brokers and investment advisors including an obligation to act in the investor’s best interest and prohibiting an advisor from placing their own interests ahead of the investor’s. Reg BI comes with different core obligations that brokers must comply with. There is the duty of care obligation requiring financial advisors to form a reasonable belief that their investment advice and recommendations are in the retail investor’s best interest among other duties. In order to do that the broker must evaluate the potential risks, rewards, and costs associated with a product, account type, or series of transactions being recommended.
Next, the broker must understand the investor’s investment background and profile. A customer’s profile includes information that describes the investor’s financial situation and needs. Information here will include their outside securities accounts and investments; relevant assets and debts; tax bracket; age; liquidity needs; risk tolerance; investment time horizon; experience with investing; investment objectives; and any other relevant information that the investor may choose to disclose pertinent to their situation. Finally, the financial advisor must use their knowledge of both their reasonable diligence into investment options as well as their knowledge of the investor’s client specific needs to consider reasonably available investment options. Those investment options must allow the broker to determine that there is a reasonable basis that the recommendation is in the retail investor’s best interest. In addition to specific investments being recommended, under Reg BI, a broker must also understand the type of account that their client would need in order to meet their care obligations. The SEC has stated that the type of securities account an investor has can greatly affect a customers’ costs and overall investment returns. Further, different account types can offer and support different features, products, securities, or services, and account type would not be appropriately applied in a one size fits all manner.
Thornton entered the securities industry in 2002. Thornton has been registered as a Broker with Centerpoint M & a Advisors, INC. / Efcg Transaction Services LLC / Compak Securities, INC. / Incline Advisors / the Spartan Group / Shorelineambrose Advisors, LLC / Mainspring Capital Management, LLC / Transitional Broker LLC / Lesko Securities INC. / Centerboard Securities, LLC / Avendus Capital, INC. / Marks Baughan Securities LLC / Capitala Securities, LLC / Equity Hill Capital, LLC / Mit Associates, LLC / Apexus Capital LLC / Fmi Capital Advisors, INC. / Arcstone Securities LLC / Private Placement Insurance Products, LLC / Valtus Capital Group, LLC / Innovation Capital, LLC / Tcfg Wealth Management, LLC / Lighthouse Capital Group, LLC / Portum Capital LLC / Augment Capital, LLC / Trinity Wealth Securities, L.l.c. / Kal Capital Markets LLC / Globalink Securities, INC. / Direct Realty Securities, INC. / Analyst Hub Securities, LLC / Wbb Securities, LLC / Bdo Capital Advisors, LLC / Exchangeright Securities, LLC / Wildridge Securities / Syndicated Capital, INC. / Nextrend Securities, INC. / Belzberg Capital / Tfa Securities, INC. / Pariter Securities, LLC / Bren Ventures LLC since 2012.
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.