SEC Charges Former Jefferies Exec With MBS Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday charged a former executive at New York-based broker-dealer Jefferies & Co. with defrauding investors while selling mortgage-backed securities (MBS) in the wake of the financial crisis so he could generate additional revenue for his firm.

According to the SEC’s complaint filed in federal court in Connecticut, Jesse Litvak arranged trades for customers as part of his job as a managing director on the MBS desk at Jefferies. Litvak, the SEC says, “would buy a MBS from one customer and sell it to another customer, but on many occasions he lied about the price at which his firm had bought the MBS so he could re-sell it to the other customer at a higher price and keep more money for the firm.”

On other occasions, the SEC says that Litvak “misled purchasers by creating a fictional seller to purport that he was arranging a MBS trade between customers when in reality he was just selling MBS out of his firm’s inventory at a higher price.” Because MBS are generally illiquid and difficult to price, it is particularly important for brokers to provide honest and accurate information.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced criminal charges against Litvak on Monday as well.