AG Jennings resuspends financial advisor for illegally accessing former clients’ account information

Attorney General Kathy Jennings has secured a six-month suspension from a former Delaware investment adviser for viewing current financial account information of former Delaware clients while unregistered.

The Investor Protection Unit (the "Unit"), the state securities regulator for Delaware, received a complaint from a former client of Robert Brandon Prettyman, an unregistered investment advisor that the Unit had previously suspended for making false statements to regulators and operating while unregistered. The complainant was concerned that Mr. Prettyman had access to his current investment account information - including while Mr. Prettyman was suspended and even after the client terminated the relationship. The Unit's investigation determined that Mr. Prettyman had opened a portal with a third-party data aggregator, eMoney Advisory, LLC ("eMoney"), while previously registered as an investment adviser. eMoney's portal permits financial professionals and their clients to view clients' information after the clients link accounts to the portal. After Mr. Prettyman was suspended in Delaware, the portal remained active and Mr. Prettyman continued to access and view (but not make transactions in) current account information of former Delaware clients.

"Investors' financial data are some of the most important and private information they maintain electronically. When an investor provides access to that information to an investment advisor through a software product, it is necessarily with a high degree of trust and faith that it will only be accessed for the intended purpose within the context of a fiduciary relationship. Financial professionals absolutely should not be viewing personal financial information when the client relationship had been ended, while suspended, or while unregistered," said Jennings. "Protecting investors from this type of conduct is at the core of investor protection."

Following a preliminary investigation into the investor's complaint, the Unit issued a Summary Order to Cease and Desist and Postponing Registration Pending Entry of Denial against Mr. Prettyman on May 3, 2024, and which was subsequently amended. A more fulsome investigation led to the filing of an Administrative Complaint on August 12, 2024. This settlement resolves both the Summary Order and the Complaint.

Proper registration of investment professionals is essential as it allows regulators to better monitor activity and ensure appropriate oversight of the industry and individuals. Investment advisers should not be operating in Delaware without being properly registered. For help checking the registration status of your financial professional, or to file a complaint, please contact the Investor Protection Unit at [email protected]. The Investor Protection Unit also encourages investors to check the registration status of financial professionals at brokercheck.finra.org and adviserinfo.sec.gov.

In addition, the Unit cautions investors to carefully review the terms of any third-party data aggregators used by their financial professionals to ensure that they understand who is able to view their account information, including when they move accounts to a new firm or adviser. The Unit will continue to review the practices of third-party data aggregators as it pertains to securities regulation and investor protection.