IIROC boosts sanctions against former advisor

A hearing panel of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) has ordered additional sanctions against Alberto Tassone, a former rep with Raymond James Ltd. in Vancouver, following an appeal of its original ruling against him, IIROC announced Thursday.

In 2017, the IIROC panel ruled that Tassone had misled IIROC investigators, but it dismissed an allegation that he engaged in unauthorized outside business activity.

Both Tassone and IIROC staff appealed the panel’s decision to the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC).

In 2018, the BCSC found that the IIROC panel made a mistake in dismissing the allegation of unauthorized outside business activity, and sent the case back to the IIROC panel to assess whether further penalties were warranted.

In the decision announced today, the IIROC panel fined Tassone, $103,648 (representing disgorgement of the money he generated through the unauthorized activity), imposed an administrative fine of $35,000 and ordered him to pay $40,000 in costs. It also suspended him for six months.

These latest penalties are in addition to the sanctions originally imposed by the panel, which included a $40,000 penalty, $40,000 in costs and a six-month suspension. As a result, Tassone now faces a 12-month suspension, almost $180,000 in fines and disgorgement, and $80,000 in costs.

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