Ann Vanderslice Unsuitable Investment Allegations Fact-checked (2024)

A client has filed a $250,000 arbitration lawsuit against financial advisor Ann Vanderslice, also known as Ann Werts, accusing her of making improper investment recommendations and neglecting to complete due research on new products.

Vanderslice’s FINRA BrokerCheck report shows that the complaint was filed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Vanderslice is headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado, and represents Federal Benefits Made Simple, an E.A. Buck Company that sells securities through Madison Avenue Securities.

The regulatory authorities are now looking into the problem. 

About Ann Vanderslice’s Career 

Throughout her 16-year career as a financial advisor, Ann Vanderslice has held a variety of positions. She is currently registered with Madison Avenue Securities and AE Wealth Management, where she works as an independent advisor.

Vanderslice’s longest stay with any firm was seven years with Cabot Lodge Securities, where she worked from 2007 to 2014. Before joining Cabot Lodge Securities, she worked briefly for numerous other firms, including Commonwealth Financial Network and Wachovia Securities.

However, Vanderslice’s repeated employment changes have raised questions about her capacity to develop long-term client connections and deliver consistent financial guidance. Such job-hopping behavior is frequently regarded as a red flag in the financial business, indicating underlying performance or compliance difficulties. 

Ann Vanderslice Accused of Selling Risky GWG L Bonds

Ann Vanderslice, along with financial advisors Jason Johnson, Ashley Robinson, and Dan Werts, operates “Federal Benefits Made Simple,” in addition to being registered with Madison Avenue Securities and independent advisor AE Wealth Management.

Vanderslice and her collaborators, on the other hand, were sacked for allegedly selling large amounts of GWG L Bonds to their consumers. 

(Source)

GWG’s L Bonds were essentially life insurance policies that were bundled and marketed as bonds on the secondary market, allowing investors to invest in the death benefit payouts of the insured’s life insurance policies.

These bonds were deemed high-risk and illiquid, with investors only able to resell their investments by selling them back to GWG Holdings for a redemption fee.

The allegations against Ann Vanderslice and her partners raise questions about their investment advice and due diligence processes, which may generate problems for potential investors. 

SEC Probe into Ann Vanderslice’s Investment Practices

The SEC began investigating GWG Holdings in October 2020 due to its accounting irregularities and L Bond issuance. To get information about the Bonds’ sales practices, the SEC subpoenaed documents from brokerage firms that sold GWG L Bonds.

According to GWG, a seller network of approximately 145 brokerage firms frequently supplied L Bonds. Ann Vanderslice previously worked at Cabot Lodge Securities, which is considered to be related to the GWG network. 

Investors in GWG L Bonds Advised by Ann Vanderslice

Investors in L Bonds may be eligible to seek compensation following GWG Holding’s bankruptcy. They can file a FINRA arbitration lawsuit against their financial advisors and brokerage firms to recover their financial losses.

Ann Vanderslice, a stockbroker and brokerage firm, must follow industry standards and rules and only recommend products that they believe are appropriate for their clients. When conducting this appropriateness research, advisors must take into account a customer’s investing goals and risk tolerance. 

L Bonds were highly speculative and illiquid high-yield debt products designed to support secondary market purchases of life insurance contracts. As a result, bondholders had just one way to resell them: return them to GWG Holdings for a redemption fee.

Due to their huge stakes and illiquidity, these bonds were only suitable for a tiny number of investors who could afford to incur significant risks and did not require access to their money. Long before L Bonds fell, investment advisors were aware of these qualities. They were supposed to advise their consumers about the dangers and only recommend L Bonds to investors who were comfortable with high risk and illiquidity. Unfortunately, many investors followed their stockbroker’s advice and purchased L bonds with their retirement assets. 

Conclusion

Ann Vanderslice and other financial advisors are accountable for understanding the risks involved with the assets they recommend to their clients and reporting any substantial hazards to those clients.

You may be eligible for compensation for your GWG L Bond losses if your financial adviser misled you into believing the GWG L Bonds were a secure, low-risk, or guaranteed investment, or if your financial advisor failed to adequately disclose the risks of GWG L Bonds when recommending them to you.

Assume you were a buyer of GWG L Bonds looking for liquid assets or low-to-moderate-risk investments. In such a situation, you may be able to recover compensation from the financial advisor and advisory firm that pushed you to do so. 

FAQs

Who is Ann Vanderslice?

Ann Vanderslice is the president and founder of Federal Benefits Made Simple, an E.A. Buck Company. She is also a financial advisor facing a $250,000 arbitration action from a customer who accuses her of providing improper investment recommendations and neglecting to conduct due diligence on new offerings. 

What did Ann Vanderslice do?

According to her FINRA BrokerCheck Report, Ann Vanderslice is named in a $250,000 FINRA arbitration claim filed by a client who says Ms. Vanderslice made unsuitable investment recommendations and failed to undertake due research on new opportunities. 

What is ‘Federal Benefits Made Simple’?

Federal Benefits Made Simple is an E.A. Buck Company subsidiary and division. Ann Vanderslice has two businesses that assist people plan for retirement. Federal Benefits Made Easy strives to help people who have worked for the federal government.

What are GWG L Bonds?

The term “GWG L Bond” designates an unrated life insurance bond used for the acquisition and premium payments of life insurance contracts obtained on the secondary market. The bond gives a greater yield than other publicly listed securities, making up for the possibility that the insurance policy payouts won’t be paid.