The Investment Center, Inc. (“Investment Center”) (CRD# 17839) has many different complaints filed by state regulatory organizations, FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority), and investors. If you’ve lost money due to broker misconduct at Investment Center, you have legal options to recover your losses. At the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, we have investigated Investment Center, its regulatory and customer complaints, and have also represented investors with claims of fraud, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty against this organization and its financial advisors.
Most investors who open accounts with Investment Center unknowingly sign arbitration agreements that require disputes to be resolved through FINRA arbitration rather than court. This doesn’t prevent you from pursuing your claim—it simply means your case will be heard by a FINRA arbitration panel instead of a judge or jury. Many investors successfully recover their losses through this process.
If you believe you have a claim against Investment Center, you should strongly consider hiring an experienced securities arbitration attorney. Time limits apply to filing investment fraud claims, so acting quickly is essential. The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., offers free consultations. Let’s discuss your case and see what we can do to help you get the compensation you need and deserve.
Can I Sue The Investment Center, Inc.?
Yes, you can sue Investment Center if you’ve lost money caused by Investment Center and/or its employees’ misconduct, but the odds are you signed away your right to sue in court and agreed to resolve your dispute in a FINRA arbitration proceeding. Attorney Robert Wayne Pearce knows very well how you can not only sue Investment Center in FINRA arbitration proceedings, but WIN that arbitration.
How to Sue The Investment Center, Inc. for Investment Losses
What Can I Do If I Lost Money at The Investment Center, Inc.?
If you lost money at Investment Center due to advisor misconduct, you can file a claim through FINRA arbitration—a dispute resolution process specifically designed for investment-related disputes. Unlike traditional court litigation, FINRA arbitration is faster and less formal, yet still provides a legally binding resolution. The process begins when you file a Statement of Claim outlining the misconduct that caused your losses and the damages you’re seeking.
Investment Center has a documented history of regulatory violations including failure to supervise agents, inadequate oversight of account transfers, and selling away incidents. These systemic supervisory failures create an environment where individual brokers can engage in misconduct without proper oversight. If your Investment Center advisor recommended unsuitable investments, churned your account, made misrepresentations, or engaged in unauthorized trading, these actions may be connected to the firm’s broader pattern of supervisory lapses.
The arbitration process allows you to present evidence of how Investment Center’s failures—both at the firm level and through its individual advisors—caused your financial harm. You can pursue claims for fraud, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, unsuitable recommendations, and other violations. Even if you signed an arbitration agreement when opening your account, you retain the right to seek full compensation for your losses through the FINRA forum.
Who Can Help Me Sue The Investment Center, Inc.?
An experienced securities arbitration attorney can guide you through every step of the claims process. The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce has extensive experience representing investors in FINRA arbitration cases against Investment Center and similar independent broker-dealers. We understand the specific supervisory failures common to Investment Center’s business model and how to build compelling cases that hold both the individual advisor and the firm accountable. Our firm has successfully handled numerous cases involving the types of misconduct frequently seen at independent broker-dealers with remote supervision structures.
What is The Investment Center, Inc.?
Investment Center (CRD# 17839) has been registered with the SEC and FINRA as a broker dealer since 1986. The company is controlled by its registered principals and IC Financial Services, Inc. and headquartered in Bedminster New Jersey with small branch offices located throughout the United States. Its independent broker-dealer Business Model has grown through acquisition and organic development of primarily one and two person registered representative offices supervised remotely. Today there are over 300 registered representatives in every state. It is now one of the 50 largest independent broker-dealer and investment advisory firms in the United States.
Why Does The Investment Center, Inc. Have So Many Bad Reviews And Customer Complaints?
Independent broker-dealers like Investment Center operate differently from traditional brokerage firms, and this business model creates significant gaps in investor protection. Instead of maintaining full-service branch offices with on-site managers and compliance officers, Investment Center runs a franchise-style operation with small, geographically dispersed offices supervised remotely. This means there’s often no one physically present to monitor day-to-day activities when your advisor recommends investments or processes transactions.
The supervisors at Investment Center’s Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) are typically other independent contractors running their own businesses—not full-time compliance professionals. They oversee multiple remote offices while simultaneously managing their own brokerage, insurance, and financial services operations. This divided attention means they cannot effectively monitor the daily operations of the advisors they’re supposed to supervise. Critical activities like reviewing new account openings, verifying investment suitability, checking for unauthorized trades, and examining client correspondence often receive minimal oversight.
Without on-site supervision, problems can go undetected for extended periods. There may be no immediate review when an advisor forges a client’s signature, misrepresents a client’s financial situation to justify unsuitable recommendations, or makes misleading statements about investment risks. Many of these independent offices receive only one compliance audit per year, creating ample opportunity for misconduct between visits. The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) has documented more instances of sales abuse and investor losses at independent broker-dealers than at traditional firms with on-site branch management and compliance personnel.
The Investment Center, Inc. Has Many Different Regulatory Problems
Investment Center’s rapid growth has not been without consequences. There have been approximately 8 state and self-regulatory body disclosure events; that is, final and formal proceedings initiated by a regulatory authority (e.g., a state or federal securities agency like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or self-regulatory body like the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)) for a violation(s) of investment-related rules or regulations. In addition, there have been scores of customer complaints filed against Investment Center for misconduct by its securities sales and investment advisory representatives that are not reported by the firm on its Central Depository Record.
We have reported and written about these regulatory problems and customer complaints over many years. Investment Center is a repeat offender: there are at least 8 reported disciplinary proceedings citing the firm with one form of supervisory lapses or another in the last decade.
A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF SOME OF THE REGULATORY PROBLEMS THE INVESTMENT CENTER, INC. HAS FACED OVER THE YEARS
Investment Center has been repeatedly censured, warned, and fined for its own misconduct and failure to supervise its army of financial advisors. In Washington, it was censured and fined for misstatements on its registration application. Florida fined the Investment Center $5,000. Texas fined the company $50,000 for failing to supervise agents where red flags were raised related to the suitability of investment recommendations for clients based on their investment profiles. New Jersey censured and fined Investment Center $11,000 for inadequate supervision of account transfers and agent registrations. Florida ordered it to pay investors damages for selling away by 1 of its financial advisors. These are only some of the regulatory disciplinary actions filed against Investment Center by FINRA. There are at least 3 more FINRA and/or state securities regulator investigations and enforcement actions reported on BrokerCheck as regulatory disciplinary proceeding disclosures.
Did The Investment Center, Inc. Advisor Misconduct Cause You Investment Losses?
When financial advisor misconduct has caused you to lose substantial value to your investment accounts, you have the right to seek reimbursement from the responsible parties. The Investment Center is responsible like any employer for its financial advisors acts and omissions. In addition, it has an independent duty to supervise its stockbrokers and investment advisors. These cases can be extremely complex, and so having the support of a reputable attorney who is experienced in recovering investment losses for investors is key to your success. Many customers make the mistake of contacting Investment Center without representation with an attorney about their complaints and have their complaints denied.
Consult With An Attorney Who Recovers Investment Losses Caused By The Investment Center, Inc. Today
The securities lawyers at The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., have helped countless investors over the last 45 years recover the losses from their investment accounts that were caused by broker negligence or misconduct. The firm has extensive experience with Investment Center cases, and Attorney Pearce is committed to seeing that those responsible for the losses you have suffered are held fully accountable. Over the course of his career, Attorney Pearce has recovered more than $175 million for investors who were victims of fraud or misconduct.
Give us a call at 800-732-2889. Let’s discuss your case and see what we can do to help you get the compensation you need and deserve.
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