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TATYANA ANDREYEVA (CRD No. 2875136)
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CONSENT ORDER |
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
WHEREAS, the Banking Commissioner (the “Commissioner”) is charged with the administration of Chapter 672a of the Connecticut General Statutes, the Connecticut Uniform Securities Act (the “Act”) and Sections 36b-31-2 et seq. of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies promulgated under the Act (the “Regulations”);
WHEREAS, Tatyana Andreyeva (“Andreyeva”) has been employed by Aegis Capital Corp. (“Aegis”) (CRD No. 15007), a Connecticut-registered broker-dealer located at 810 Seventh Avenue, 11th Floor, New York, New York, since October 12, 2010 and was previously registered under the Act as a broker-dealer agent of Westrock Advisors, Inc. (“Westrock”) (CRD No. 114338) from August 2, 2005 to December 19, 2006 and from August 28, 2008 to October 8, 2010;
WHEREAS, Andreyeva has never been registered as a broker-dealer agent of Aegis in Connecticut;
WHEREAS, Westrock of 230 Park Avenue, Suite 934, New York, New York was registered as a broker-dealer under the Act from April 24, 2002 until January 2011 when its broker-dealer registration in Connecticut was revoked by order of the Commissioner;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner, acting pursuant to Section 36b-26 of the Act and through the Securities and Business Investments Division (the “Division”) of the Department of Banking, has conducted an investigation into the activities of Westrock and its current and former agents to determine whether they, or any of them, have violated, are violating or are about to violate any provision of the Act or any regulation or order under the Act;
WHEREAS, as a result of such investigation, the Division obtained evidence that, at various times when she was not registered as a broker-dealer agent of Westrock under the Act, Andreyeva offered and sold a private placement under the auspices of the firm to at least one Connecticut resident;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner, through the Securities and Business Investments Division, has also conducted an examination of Aegis pursuant to Section 36b-14(d) of the Act and 36b-31-14f of the Regulations, and a related investigation under Section 36b-26 of the Act to determine whether Aegis, its employees, agents, officers and directors had violated, were violating or were about to violate any provision of the Act or any regulation or order under the Act;
WHEREAS, as a result of the investigation and examination of Aegis, the Division obtained evidence that Andreyeva, after becoming associated with Aegis, contacted a Connecticut resident to solicit him to transfer a brokerage account maintained at Westrock and to open a new account at Aegis. At the time of the solicitation, Andreyeva was not registered as a broker-dealer agent of Aegis under the Act;
WHEREAS, the evidence described above would support the initiation of administrative proceedings under Section 36b-27 of the Act seeking the entry of an order to cease and desist and/or an order imposing an administrative fine against Andreyeva;
WHEREAS, an administrative proceeding under Section 36b-27 of the Act would constitute a “contested case” within the meaning of Section 4-166(2) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, Section 4-177(c) of Chapter 54 of the Connecticut General Statutes provides that "[u]nless precluded by law, a contested case may be resolved by stipulation, agreed settlement, or consent order or by the default of a party";
WHEREAS, Section 36b-31(a) of the Act provides, in part, that: “The Commissioner may from time to time make, amend and rescind such . . . orders as are necessary to carry out the provisions of Sections 36b-2 to 36b-34, inclusive [of the Connecticut Uniform Securities Act]”; and
WHEREAS, without holding a hearing and without trial or adjudication of any issue of fact or law, and prior to the initiation of any formal proceeding, the Commissioner and Andreyeva reached an agreement, the terms of which are reflected in this Consent Order, in full and final resolution of the matters described herein;
CONSENT TO WAIVER OF PROCEDURAL RIGHTS
WHEREAS, Andreyeva, through her execution of this Consent Order, voluntarily waives the following rights:
| 1. | To receive prior written notice within the meaning of Sections 36b-27(a), 36b-27(d), 4-177(a) and 4-177(b) of the Connecticut General Statutes; |
| 2. | To present evidence and argument and to otherwise avail herself of Section 4-177c(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes; |
| 3. | To present her position in a hearing in which she is represented by counsel; |
| 4. | To have a written record of the hearing made and a written decision issued by a hearing officer; and |
| 5. | To seek judicial review of, or otherwise challenge or contest the matters described herein, including the validity of this Consent Order; |
FINDINGS OF THE COMMISSIONER AS TO EVIDENTIARY SUFFICIENCY
TO INITIATE ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDINGS
WHEREAS, the Commissioner finds that, based on the following, which Andreyeva neither admits nor denies, sufficient grounds exist to initiate administrative proceedings under Section 36b-27 of the Act to enter an order to cease and desist and/or an order imposing an administrative fine of up to $100,000 per violation against Andreyeva:
| 1. | In February 2008, Andreyeva violated Section 36b-6(a) of the Act by transacting business as a broker-dealer agent of Westrock while Andreyeva was not registered as a broker-dealer agent of Westrock under the Act; and |
| 2. | In October 2010, and while associated with Aegis, Andreyeva violated Section 36[b]-6(a) of the Act by transacting business as a broker-dealer agent of Aegis while Andreyeva was not registered as a broker-dealer agent of Aegis under the Act; |
NOW, THEREFORE, THE COMMISSIONER ORDERS AS FOLLOWS:
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No later than the date this Consent Order is entered by the Commissioner, Andreyeva shall remit to the Department of Banking, via certified bank check payable to "Treasurer, State of Connecticut", the sum of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) as an administrative fine;
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| 2. |
Entry of this Consent Order by the Commissioner is without prejudice to the right of the Commissioner to take enforcement action against Andreyeva if the Commissioner determines that compliance is not being observed with the terms hereof;
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| 3. |
This Consent Order shall not preclude additional proceedings by the Commissioner against Andreyeva for acts or omissions not specifically addressed in this Consent Order or for acts and/or omissions that do not arise from the facts or transactions addressed herein; and
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| 4. |
This Consent Order shall become final when entered.
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| So ordered at Hartford, Connecticut | _______/s/____________ | |
| this 27th day of March 2012. | Howard F. Pitkin | |
| Banking Commissioner |
CONSENT TO ENTRY OF ORDER
I, Tatyana Andreyeva, state that I have read the foregoing Consent Order; that I know and fully understand its contents; that I agree freely and without threat or coercion of any kind to comply with the terms and conditions stated herein; and that I voluntarily consent to the entry of this Consent Order, expressly waiving any right to a hearing on the matters described herein.
| ______/s/________ |
| Tatyana Andreyeva |
On this 7th day of February 2012, personally appeared Tatyana Andreyeva, signer of the foregoing Consent Order, who, being duly sworn, did acknowledge the same to be her free act and deed, before me.
______/s/_________________________
Notary Public
My Commission Expires: August 24, 2013