Finra bars former Wells Fargo broker terminated for allegedly asking a client for a loan

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. has barred a former Wells Fargo broker who was terminated for allegedly asking a client for a loan and attempting to make an unauthorized trade. J. Gordon Cloutier Jr. worked at Wells Fargo Advisors in Frisco, Texas, as a registered representative for seven years until he was terminated in October 2016. (More: SEC bars unregistered adviser who pled guilty to securities fraud) Following its policy after a broker is terminated, Finra launched an investigation but was not able to interview Mr. Cloutier. Finra claimed he never responded to multiple requests made via mail, email and phone calls. By not making himself available for an interview, Mr. Cloutier violated Finra rules and by default was barred from the industry. Mr. Cloutier could not be reached for comment. According to Finra's BrokerCheck, Mr. Cloutier previously worked at Merrill Lynch from 1996 to 2009. He was no longer registered with Finra or working for a member firm at the time of Finra's enforcement action.