Arete Wealth Management, LLC broker Unbo Chung (CRD# 6208569) is accused of selling away. He has been registered with Arete Wealth Management, LLC in Chicago, Illinois, from 2013 to 2026, and Center Street Securities, Inc. in Kennesaw, Georgia, from 2021 to 2023.
In January 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleged that Joey Miller and brothers Jeff Larson and Randy Larson solicited dozens of their customers and clients to purchase stock in Zona Energy, Inc. without receiving Arete Wealth Management, LLC’s approval and therefore not subject to its compliance oversight, a practice called “selling away” that defrauded investors. They, along with Randy Larson and Unbo Chung (the firm’s general counsel and CCO) “obtained liability waivers, which they knew contained material misrepresentations and omissions, from their advisory clients, to whom they owed a fiduciary duty.” The SEC found that Joey Miller and Jeff Larson received discounted shares of Zona in exchange for recommending the investments; they did not disclose this arrangement. The complaint alleges that “The representatives and Chung received an anonymous email alleging that the control person was known by another name and a convicted felon who had served several years in prison for conspiracy to commit securities fraud and other crimes. Yet, some of the representatives’ customers and clients who had previously invested in Zona invested additional funds, and the representatives at least assisted certain of these investors in doing so. The brokerage customers and advisory clients, along with other investors the representatives solicited, had invested more than $8.5 million in Zona.” The SEC found that Joey Miller and Jeff Larson used email addresses outside of the firm for communication about Zona investments. The SEC complaint reported that “the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the Commission respectively filed criminal and civil charges against the control person and others alleging that Zona was a sham company and that he and other insiders had misappropriated investor funds for luxury expenses. That same day, FINRA sent Chung an email requesting information on whether individuals at Arete had raised funds for Zona and named Jeff Larson, Randy Larson, and Miller. To try to limit Arete’s liability, Arete’s CEO demanded that the representatives obtain liability releases from their customers and clients who had invested in Zona and delegated oversight of this process to Chung, who worked with the representatives’ counsel. Chung played an active role in this process and helped the representatives obtain broad liability releases from many of their customers and clients in return for payments typically ranging from $1 to $5,000-much less than most of these investors had invested in Zona.”
Unbo Chung Customer Complaints
He has been the subject of two customer complaints, according to his CRD report:
December 2024. “Client alleges unsuitable investment recommendation.” The customer sought $100,000 in damages, and the case was settled for $14,999. The complaint was regarding alternative investment losses.
November 2024. “Clients allege sale of unsuitable investments.” The case was settled for $150,000. The complaint was regarding alternative investment losses.
Pursuant to FINRA Rules, member firms are responsible for supervising a broker’s activities during the time the broker is registered with the firm. Therefore, Arete Wealth Management, LLC may be liable for investment or other losses suffered by Unbo Chung’s customers.
Erez Law represents investors in the United States for claims against brokers and brokerage firms for wrongdoing. If you have experienced investment losses, please call us at 888-840-1571 or complete our contact form for a free consultation. Erez Law is a nationally recognized law firm representing individuals, trusts, corporations and institutions in claims against brokerage firms, banks and insurance companies on a contingency fee basis.
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