Bill Conn: FINRA Suspends Ex-Raymond James Advisor

Former San Francisco financial advisor Bill Conn (CRD# 1477107) was recently sanctioned in connection with allegations of unauthorized trades and an improper client loan. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records show that the former Raymond James broker is currently registered as an investment advisor with International Assets Investment Management.

A Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent (No. 2022075925601) describes FINRA’s disciplinary action against Mr. Conn. Filed in April 2025, it alleges that he made 465 transactions in 12 accounts held by five clients without prior written authorization. As FINRA found, his member firm’s procedures at the time forbade brokers from making discretionary trades without first obtaining the customer’s prior written authorization and the firm’s prior approval. “Although [his] customers knew he was placing trades in their accounts,” according to the letter, he “did not have written authorization from the customers or permission from Raymond James to exercise discretion in the accounts.” FINRA found that his trades therefore violated its rules.

The AWC Letter also describes findings that Mr. Conn violated firm policy by giving monetary gifts to a customer. The alleged gift in question comprised 12 deposits into a customer’s checking account, totaling $120,000. At the time, FINRA found, Raymond James’ internal policies prohibited its brokers “from giving gifts in excess of $100 per customer per year,” and Mr. Conn allegedly attested on annual compliance questionnaires that he had not made any gifts more than this amount. FINRA found that his conduct violated Rule 2010, which requires brokers to uphold high standards of commercial honor and just and equitable principles of trade. As a result of these findings, FINRA issued him a three-month suspension and a fine of $15,000.

Mr. Conn’s BrokerCheck report discloses several investor complaints. The most recent, filed in 2022, alleged that as a representative of Raymond James & Associates, he recommended unsuitable investments. In 2023 the complaint reached a settlement of $1.5 million.

An earlier investor complaint, filed in 2022, alleged that as a Raymond James representative, he recommended and implemented an unsuitable investment strategy that concentrated the customer’s accounts in equities and writing covered call options. The complaint also alleged that he failed to disclose the strategy’s risks, charged excessive commissions, and made unauthorized transactions. In 2023 the complaint reached a settlement of $613,000.

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Securities and Exchange Commission, Bill Conn holds 38 years of securities industry experience. Based in Oakland, California, he has been registered as an investment advisor with International Assets Investment Management since 2022. His past registrations include Raymond James & Associates, JP Morgan Securities, Deutsche Bank Securities, DB Alex Brown, Salomon Smith Barney, Painewebber, and Gliksman Securities. His credentials include the passage of five securities industry qualifying exams: the National Commodity Futures Examination, or Series 3; the General Securities Representative Examination, or Series 7; the Securities Industry Essentials Examination, or SIE; the Uniform Investment Adviser Law Examination, or Series 65; and the Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination, or Series 63. He is licensed in California. (Information current as of April 11, 2025.)

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