11:54 AM EDT, 09/24/2024 (MT Newswires) -- CIBC's (CM) CIBC World Markets and CIBC Private Wealth Advisors affiliates as well as Stifel Financial's ( SF ) Stifel Nicolaus unit agreed to pay a combined $47 million to resolve allegations of recordkeeping failures, the US Securities and Exchange Commission said Tuesday.

The CIBC affiliates and Stifel Nicolaus agreed to pay $12 million and $35 million, respectively. The regulator also fined Invesco Distributors, Glazer Capital, Intesa Sanpaolo, Canaccord Genuity, Regions Securities, Alpaca Securities and Focused Wealth Management. The seven firms agreed to pay fines for a cumulative total of more than $41.2 million.

The SEC said the units failed to maintain and preserve required records related to their broker-dealer and investment adviser businesses.

In these off-channel communications, personnel communicated externally and internally by text messages and/or other unapproved written communications platforms using their personal devices, according to the SEC.

The regulator said it uncovered the alleged misconduct after starting a risk-based initiative to look into the use of off-channel and unpreserved communications at broker-dealers and registered investment advisers.

Stifel declined MT Newswires' request for comment while CIBC didn't immediately respond.

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