Sandra Kolendreski of Prince Albert has been fined for altering mutual fund documents. (Charlene Tebbutt/ paNOW Staff)

By Charlene Tebbutt

mutual fund fines

P.A woman fined for altering mutual fund documents

Mar 1, 2019 | 9:23 PM

A Prince Albert woman is facing several thousand dollars in fines by a national regulatory association after admitting to altering mutual fund documents.

In a settlement agreement issued last month by the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA), Sandra Lynn Kolendreski agreed to pay $13,000 in fines plus costs of $2,500.

Kolendreski worked as a registered mutual fund salesperson between 1999 and 2017 in Prince Albert, including nearly 10 years with Credential Asset Management between 2008 and 2017.

Agreed facts contained in the settlement document with the MFDA say that Kolendreski cut a client’s signature from a previous account form and pasted it onto a new form, and used liquid correction fluid to block out the signature on the earlier form. The cut and pasting was against Credential’s policy and the form was used to process a transaction on behalf of the client.

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Kolendreski was also found to have altered 13 other forms on behalf of eight clients between March 2011 and June 2016, which included not having the clients initial the changes and in 11 of those cases, using liquid correction fluid to alter information on account forms. The altered forms included a direct transfer form, two investment instruction forms, one new application and two transfer authorization forms.

Kolendreski was also found to have obtained two pre-signed subscription forms on Jan. 15, 2016, another breach of Credential’s policies.

Reached by phone this week, Kolendreski said she never took any money and only altered the documents for the convenience of her clients. She no longer works in the industry.

“I had made a bad decision and I had done these things for convenience for one thing, and the other ones were errors that they had found in my files,” Kolendreski said. “As weird as it sounds, I was trying to help them.”

The alterations were discovered during a branch audit on May 10, 2017. Kolendreski was fired from her job the next day and the company began notifying clients. None of Kolendreski’s clients reported any concerns, the settlement agreement notes, and Kolendreski had never been sanctioned previously.

While there is no evidence Kolendreski benefitted financially or that any clients lost money over the altered documents, the MFDA said it is important to take action in instances where policies are not followed to promote investor confidence and protection.

“Ms. Kolendreski’s registration was terminated by her Member [Credential] in May 2017,” a spokesperson for MFDA wrote in an email. “Provided that Ms. Kolendreski complies with the terms of the Settlement Agreement, she could seek to reapply with the Saskatchewan Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority to become registered with an MFDA Member.”

Kolendreski has six months to pay the fines.

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Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt