The Hansberger Group Leech Funds Of Clients?
The Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley is a wealth management firm in Atlanta. Run by James Hansberger, it uses various unethical methods to defraud its clients.
In this review, you’ll learn about these unethical tactics as it’s your right to know about them:
About the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley
The Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley is a financial consultancy firm in Atlanta, Georgia. Their address is 3280 Peachtree Rd NE Ste 2000, Atlanta, GA 30305, US, and the contact number is 4040-264-4269.
The Managing Director of this firm is James C Hansberger. He is also the Global Sports and Entertainment Director and Senior Portfolio Management Director at Morgan Stanley. Other notable people at this firm are Morton Levey, John Wilson, S. Ross Caphton, and Rebecca Stone.
The Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley claims to be a comprehensive wealth management practice that also acts as a multi-family office. It offers multiple services, including advisory solutions in family governance, estate planning strategies, charitable giving, retirement planning, and financial planning strategies.
James and his firm have been operating in the ultra-high-net-worth marketplace for multiple decades. However, they are using their knowledge and experience for the wrong reasons.
The current provisions of the firm put their clients in very unfavorable positions, particularly in the long term. They are designed in such a way, that by the time an investor realizes that they are in a terrible position, it would be too late.
The next section of this review will explain those provisions in detail. But first, look at the legal history of James Hansberger:
Red Flags and Issues in the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley
James Hansberger’s History of Legal Disputes
When you start researching a new wealth advisor, it helps to know their professional history. The best way to go about this process is to check the advisor’s FINRA BrokerCheck listing.
The FINRA BrokerCheck is a vast database where you can find out an advisor’s years of experience, state licenses passed exams, and the legal conflicts they have faced.
James Hansberger, the MD of the Hanberger Group Morgan Stanley, has faced two major legal disputes so far. His first dispute occurred in 2002. Here, the client’s attorney alleged misrepresentation and failure to follow instructions about the client’s managed accounts. They requested $50,000 in damages but the firm denied the claim.
Did You Know?
Most financial disputes are resolved by ADR methods. The ADR methods include arbitration, negotiation, mediation, conciliation and private judging. However, it needs to be noted that less lawsuits are filed for financial scams than civil crimes, and people try to stick to the ADR methods, due to the dubious agreements by the brokers.
However, the firm didn’t specify on what grounds they denied the claim.
Mr. Hansberger’s second dispute occurred in 2010. The claimant alleged misrepresentation concerning the MAT series of private placement investment funds. They alleged that the advisor passed along to him erroneous information which he received from CGMI.
They settled the case for $144,750.
The Hansbergroup Group MD claimed that he settled the case to avoid the cost and risk of arbitration. He also added that he denies the allegations completely.
Skilled FAs rarely face one legal dispute and the leader of the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley has faced two major conflicts so far. This is not a good sign and suggests that James isn’t as reliable as he claims to be.
Sell Investment Products
When you work with a financial advisor, you expect them to recommend investments solely based on their suitability for your portfolio and goals. However, that’s not possible with this firm.
That’s because the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley earns commissions from the sale of certain investment products. It introduces bias in their recommendations and they have a financial incentive for ignoring your interests.
They have no incentive for recommending investments that don’t generate commissions, even if they are suitable for your goals and requirements. Trusting the recommendations of this wealth advisory firm becomes a gamble. Before you trust any of their recommendations, you must ask yourself, “Are they prioritizing my financial growth or their own?”
You end up missing out on many suitable investments with such advisors because they prioritize their wallets over your growth.
Charge Hidden Fees
Another huge red flag in the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley is that it charges hidden fees. It can offer investments that charge a 12b-1 fee, a variable percentage fee that they use to ramp up your costs.
Keep in mind that the 12b-1 fee goes straight into their pockets as it’s a promotional fee companies pay to brokers for marketing their products.
Furthermore, because it’s a percentage fee, how much you pay depends on the size of your portfolio. Combined with the hidden fees, the 12b-1 fee is a nightmare for investors with significant portfolios.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a reliable wealth advisor, look elsewhere because the Hansberger Group Morgan Stanley has too many flaws.
The firm’s leadership has a history of facing legal disputes while the terms and conditions of the firm put its clients in problematic situations. It would be best for your interests to find a different wealth management firm in the region.
Not at all our experience. Very happy with the service and performance that we have received from the Hansberger Group. After a 50+ year career to have 1 dispute during a historic market downturn is pretty good in my opinion. Also, they are consistently listed in Forbes and Barron’s as one of the country’s top advisory firms.
Extremely incompetent and poor client service.