SEC Charges Buffalo Advisory Firm and Principal With Fraud Relating to Association With Barred Adviser

The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed charges against a Buffalo, New York, investment advisory firm and its owner for misleading firm clients about its association with a barred investment adviser, who is also being charged for violating the bar. The SEC’s complaint alleges that in 2014, Walter Grenda sold his investment advisory assets, including his longstanding client base, to Grenda Group LLC and his son, Gregory Grenda, in anticipation of a negative outcome in an SEC fraud investigation. In 2015, the SEC barred Walter Grenda from association with an investment adviser, but the SEC alleges that Walter Grenda continued to associate with Grenda Group by meeting with a prospective client and current clients in the firm’s offices, as well as making discretionary changes to clients’ investment accounts.