A FINRA arbitration panel has ordered Citigroup Global Markets to pay a combined $54 million in awards to clients who were sold the MAT/ASTA funds (FINRA Arbitration 09-03297). The claimants, who were former clients of Citigroup, alleged that they were the victims of securities fraud, unsuitability, and a failure to supervise arising from multiple investments […]
Citigroup/Smith Barney MAT/ASTA Funds
Smiley Bishop & Porter LLP is investigating the Citigroup/Smith Barney MAT/ASTA Hedge Funds. The Funds were allegedly marketed as conservative, suitable investments. Unfortunately, the Funds were heavily leveraged and exposed to higher risk than represented. The Funds were involved in a risky investment strategy known as municipal arbitrage, and many investors were unaware of the […]
MAT/ASTA Fund
In 2002, Citigroup’s Smith Barney brokerage unit started marketing six MAT/ASTA hedge funds to its clients. These Citigroup proprietary funds were trusts, which used borrowed money to buy municipal bonds, and were supposed to make profits based on the spread in interest rates between borrowed and invested funds. Total assets in these funds were approximately […]
