Michael Campopiano (CRD #4357852, La Verne, California)

March 15, 2022 – An AWC was issued in which Campopiano was fined $2,500 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in all capacities for one month. Without admitting or denying the findings, Campopiano consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that he caused trade confirmations to show an inaccurate representative code by changing the representative code for trades. The findings stated that Campopiano entered into an agreement through which he agreed to service certain customer accounts, including executing trades for those accounts, under a joint representative code that he shared with a retired representative. The agreement set forth what percentages of the commissions each representative would earn on trades placed using the joint representative code. Campopiano placed trades in accounts that were covered by the agreement using different representative codes. Although the firm’s system correctly prepopulated the trades with the applicable joint representative code, Campopiano changed the code for the trades to representative codes under which he received a higher commission percentage than he would have received had he used the joint representative code that he shared with the retired representative. Campopiano mistakenly believed that he was permitted to change the code on the trades because his member firm had transferred certain accounts that were subject to the agreement to other registered representatives of the firm, who were not part of the agreement with the retired representative. As a result, Campopiano caused the firm to maintain inaccurate books and records. The firm has since reimbursed the retired representative. The suspension was in effect from April 4, 2022, through May 3, 2022. (FINRA Case #2021072169601)