Finra bars former UBS rep involved in trading away investigation

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. has barred former UBS representative and branch manager Nicolas Barrios for declining to take part in an investigation into alleged trading away activities. (More:​ UBS confronts 'one of the worst' Q1 environments in recent history) In April, Mr. Barrios was discharged by UBS after stating in a firm review that he had arranged for a client to invest away from the firm in a private company, that Mr. Barrios that personally invested in that company with the approval of UBS, and that he used his personal email to communicate with the client's family in order to detection by UBS. UBS later learned that at least seven of Mr. Barrios' clients moved money from UBS to outside bank accounts from which they wrote checks to a company with which Mr. Barrios was affiliated. (More:​ Advisers with $876 million in AUM join UBS from U.S. Trust) Mr. Barrios began his securities career at Chatfield Dean in 1991, moved to Merrill Lynch later that year, and then to First Union Brokerage, a forerunner of Wachovia Securities, in 1999. He joined UBS in 2008.