This correction reflects the current status of Securities America Advisor Advisors Inc.
The Securities and Exchange Commission settled charges on Friday with investment advisers PNC Investments LLC PNC, -3.69% Securities America Advisors Inc., and Geneos Wealth Management Inc., for alleged conflicts of interest that resulted in a breach of their fiduciary duties to clients generating more than $12 million dollars of allegedly improper fees in the process. The three firms allegedly failed to disclose conflicts of interest and violated their duty to seek the best transaction execution when they invested advisory clients in higher-cost mutual fund shares when lower-cost shares of the same funds were available. PNCI and Geneos failed to disclose the conflict of interest associated with compensation they received from third parties for investing clients in particular mutual funds, and PNCI improperly charged advisory fees to client accounts for periods when there was no assigned investment advisory representative. The SEC also charged Geneos for failing to identify its revised mutual fund selection disclosures as a "material change" in its 2017 disclosure brochure. The firms will pay almost $15 million without admitting or denying the allegations, with more than $12 million going to harmed clients.