SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Feb. 28, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Securities Arbitration Law Firm of Klayman & Toskes, P.A., www.sueubspuertorico.com, together with Carlo Law Offices, P.S.C. located in Puerto Rico, announced today that they filed a claim against UBS Financial Services Incorporated of Puerto Rico and UBS Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:UBS) (collectively "UBS"), on behalf of three Puerto Rican investors. The claim, filed with FINRA's arbitration department, seeks to recover damages sustained in six (6) UBS Puerto Rico Closed-End Bond Funds ("CEBFs"): Puerto Rico Investors Tax Free Fund, Puerto Rico Investors Tax Free Fund II, Puerto Rico Fixed Income Fund, Puerto Rico Fixed Income Fund IV, Puerto Rico Investors Tax Free Fund IV and Puerto Rico Investors Tax Free Fund V.
The Complaint alleges that Claimants trusted UBS and its financial advisor, David Lugo ("Lugo"), to recommend investments that would provide income with low risk. Instead, Lugo and UBS recommended its proprietary CEBFs that were leveraged and concentrated in Puerto Rico municipals. UBS sold the CEBFs with the stated investment objectives of current income with preservation of capital. However, these funds were too risky to maintain these objectives. Lugo and UBS failed to disclose to Claimants the risk associated with the CEBFs in that they are leveraged, lack diversification and trade on a secondary market that is controlled and operated by UBS. This lack of liquidity increases the risk of the funds. In addition to the recommendation to purchase the CEBFs, Lugo advised one of the claimants to open a Line of Credit through UBS Bank USA, with her CEBFs serving as collateral for the loan. This was another unsuitable recommendation which increased the risk to the portfolio, and eventually led to collateral calls.
The sole purpose of this release is to investigate, on behalf of our clients, the sales practices of UBS in connection with the sale of CEBFs to their customers. Current and former customers of UBS, or other full-service brokerage firms in Puerto Rico, who purchased CEBFs, and have information relating to the manner in which the firm represented these products, are encouraged to contact Steven D. Toskes, Esquire of Klayman & Toskes, or Osvaldo Carlo, Esquire of Carlo Law Offices, at (787) 919-7325, or visit us on the web at www.sueubspuertorico.com.
