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Bank Of America Investment By H. Bernstein - Editor, StockPatrol

old baseball fanatic Yankee Irving (voiced by newcomer Jake T. Austin) is always the last one picked for sandlot baseball games. But when Babe Ruth's prized bat is stolen during the 1932 World Series, Yankee steps up to the plate to help retrieve it for his beloved idol. country journey that teaches him the stuff real heroes are made of, and along the way, Yankee learns the importance of perseverance and the true meaning of friendship.

Investment Opportunity Yankees are making headlines this week - and not only on the baseball field. Yankee Financial gets tagged out by the NASD for running a boiler room.

Legends Field is the premier venue of the Florida Grapefruit League. It is home to the New York Yankees, who spared no expense on this ballpark. It is referred to as a mini Yankee Stadium because it has the same look and feel as Yankee Stadium. Even the dimensions of the field are the same! Games here are always packed full of Yankee fans. If you are in Tampa on a March afternoon, get to the Legends Field to catch the Bronx bombers in action!

Banc Of America Investment Visit our AXcess News Forum and add your comments on this story. Try your hand at writing, the best story will be published on our news network. Take our micro cap stock poll too!

The New York Yankees recently revoked the season tickets of several fans caught reselling their seats on StubHub and other websites, even as the team is developing Pinstripe Marketplace, a website where season ticket holders will legally be able to resell their tickets for up to 45 percent above face value, with the Yankees taking a cut. Yankee officials did not return phone calls.

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To a European or Asian, a Yankee is an American; to a southern American, a Yankee is a Northerner; to a Northerner, a Yankee is a New Englander; to a New Englander, a Yankee is a Vermonter; to a Vermonter, a Yankee is a person who eats apple pie for breakfast; to a Vermont person who eats apple pie for breakfast, a Yankee is someone who eats it with a knife.

Investment Solution Strategic If it isn't Bucky Dent, it's Aaron Boone. Unsung heroes abound for the Yankees. - the New York Yankees, that is. And so, it will be at least one more year (and probably more than that) before the Boston Red Sox exorcise the ghost of the Bambino. Anyway, they can commiserate with the cursed Cubbies, who share a penchant for disaster.But not every Yankee is a winner. There may be magic in the pinstripes, but not in the name. Just ask Yankee Financial Group, Inc., a brokerage firm located on New York's Long Island, home to some of the brokerage industry's best known penny stock firms.

A leader on the field and captain of the Bronx Bombers, Derek Jeter has become the franchise player that the Yankees organization expected him to become. Jeter won Rookie of the Year honors in 1996 and the 2000 season was his breakout year, Star MVP and World Series MVP Awards. To date, he's led the Yankees to four World Series Championships and has continually amazed fans with his timely hitting, amazing catches and throws, as well as his infectious love of the game....

Investment Banking Services As it happens, Long Island is closer to Shea Stadium, home of the hapless Mets, than to The House That Ruth Built. That may explain why the old New York Yankee magic is missing. The NASD says that Yankee Financial was caught stealing. On October 16, 2003, the NASD filed a complaint, charging Yankee Financial, and its former branch manager, with operating a high-pressure boiler room sales operation that defrauded investors of $8 million.

Bank Investment According to the NASD complaint, the boiler room operated out of Yankee Financial's Brooklyn and Staten Island branches, where brokers used aggressive sales tactics, misrepresented facts, made baseless price predictions, and failed to point out material facts, in order to persuade customers to invest in three highly speculative Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board (OTCBB) securities: Silver Star Foods, Inc.; Western Media Group Corp.; and Golden Chief Resources, Inc.

Alternative Investment The NASD says that Yankee Financial brokers often targeted the elderly and others for whom these investments were patently unsuitable.

Online Investment Services As the following indicates, the three companies that were being touted by Yankee Financial's brokers had dubious credentials:

Accompany Essential Investment Silver Star Foods purported to be a distributor of pre-packaged frozen pasta products purchased from suppliers. According to its Form 10-QSB for the period ended June 30, 2001 the Company had no revenues, total current assets of $100,883, and had essentially ceased doing business. Its accountants had expressed "substantial doubts" about its ability to continue as a going concern.

Investment Company According to its Form 10-QSB for the period ended September 30, 2001, Western Media Group Corp had total assets of $46,284, including $3,494 in cash, liabilities of $6,452 and a net operating loss of $1,248. The filing also noted that one customer had historically accounted for almost all of the company's revenues. The Company's accountants noted that it had only enough revenue to stay in business for twelve months.

Investment Management Solution Golden Chief Resources, Inc. claimed to hold gas and oil interests in Texas and Louisiana. According to its Form 10-QSB for the period ending June 30, 2001, the Company had no operations from 1986 to 1999, then re-entered the development stage, and was entirely dependent on raising new capital but had had "little success" doing so. The report said that Golden Chief Resources had total assets of $23,802, including $102 in cash, total liabilities of $717,316 and a net operating loss of $994,678. Its accountants expressed "substantial doubts" about its ability to remain in business.

Investment Management Services Also charged were a number of Yankee Financial executives and brokers, including Richard F. Kresge, the brokerage firm's President and majority owner, who has been cited for fraudulent sales practices and failure to supervise. Gary Giordano, former Yankee Financial branch office manager, was charged with fraud for making unsuitable recommendations and for failing to supervise brokers in the Brooklyn and Staten Island offices. Charges against Joseph C. Korwasky, Yankee Financial's former compliance officer, included failing to report customer complaints to NASD.

Guide Investment Stock NASD's surveillance efforts revealed that a number of other individuals involved with Yankee Financial, Sierra Brokerage Services, and Argus Securities, participated in these efforts by improperly pressuring customers to purchase shares, or otherwise participated in the unlawful scheme. According to the NASD, most of the shares sold by Yankee Financial to its customers came from offshore accounts maintained by Sierrra.As a result of NASD's investigation, 11 individuals were permanently barred including:

Investment Manual Solution Kenneth Gliwa, Yankee Financial's former Vice President, who settled charges that he failed to supervise the firm's branch offices, allowed two unregistered persons to hire brokers and operate the Brooklyn and Staten Island branch offices, failed to conduct any meaningful review of the three securities to determine whether they were suitable investments for the firm's customers, and allowed the firm to operate without any written supervisory procedures; Jeffrey Richardson, Sierra's President and head trader, settled charges that he participated in an unlawful distribution of unregistered shares, which generated millions of dollars for offshore entities controlled by the two individuals who owned and operated Yankee Financial's Brooklyn and Staten Island branch offices;

Investment Stock Lawrence Dugo, a Yankee Financial broker, and Samuel Barmapov, an Argus broker, settled charges that they used fraudulent sales practices in recommending shares to investors; and

Essential Investment Solution Several other individuals were charged with failing to appear and testify before the NASD.

Citicorp Investment Services Make no mistake about it. This group of Yankees is headed for the Hall of Shame.

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