Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson Finalizes Agreement with JPMorgan Chase

INDIANAPOLIS (July 28, 2016) – Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson announced today that the office has reached a $950,000 settlement with JPMorgan regarding its investment advisory business in Indiana. The settlement is the result of an investigation by the Secretary of State’s office into JPMorgan services offered to banking customers.  The office alleges JPMorgan did not disclose important information surrounding certain investment services they provided.

“Investors have the right to know all the facts and to receive complete information when deciding to invest,” said Secretary Lawson, “this right extends to a seasoned accredited investor or a novice investor.”

At various times between 2008 and 2014, JPMorgan did not disclose its use of a model that guided clients to purchase JPMorgan proprietary products.  The practice involves JPMorgan investing client assets in JPMorgan proprietary products where there is no substantial difference between a JPMorgan product and a third party product.  JPMorgan has updated its disclosure documentation and now more clearly discloses the conflicts of interest to investment clients.  Under the terms of the agreement, New York based JPMorgan agreed to pay a civil penalty of $950,000.

“We are tasked with looking out for Indiana investors,” said Securities Commissioner Alex Glass, “and part of that is ensuring that they have all the information needed to make informed and educated investment decisions.”

For information on the agency’s efforts to promote financial literacy and prevent fraud visit www.indianamoneywise.com