Former Merrill Lynch banker fined $10,000 over doctored expenses

A former Merrill Lynch investment banker who altered expense receipts so he could be reimbursed for car rides home has been suspended for one year and fined $10,000.

(More:​ SEC bars California adviser over $5.7 million fraud)

Prabir Purohit, who is now director of mergers and acquisitions at Dominion Energy in Richmond, Va., altered the receipts to make it appear that he was taking late-night car trips home so that he could be reimbursed, according to a letter of acceptance, waiver and consent from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc.

Mr. Purohit joined Merrill Lynch in October 2008 and was voluntarily terminated by the firm in November 2016. In April 2018, Merrill Lynch filed an amended Form U5 and reported to Finra that Mr. Purohit improperly altered expense receipts and submitted them for reimbursement.

(More:​ Finra arbitration panel awards investor $276,000 in Woodbridge Ponzi scheme case)

Merrill Lynch’s expense policy allowed employees to expense late-night car trips home from the office after 10 p.m. Between January and June 2016, Finra said that Mr. Purohit took a car service from work to his home before 10 p.m. on 50 occasions and charged the rides to his company credit card. The expenses totaled $3,246.14. He altered the receipts before submitting them to Merrill Lynch for reimbursement.

Related Topics: Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Merrill Lynch