Barclays PLC (BCS) Accused of Selling Unregistered Securities
A shareholder filed a class action on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Barclays PLC (NYSE: BCS) iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short Terms Futures ETN between February 21, 2019 and September 19, 2022. Barclays is a British universal bank, offering consumer banking and payments services in the United Kingdom, United States, and Europe, as well as global corporate and investment banking services.
According to the complaint, Barclays, through its subsidiary BBPLC, is the issuer of the iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN, an exchange-traded note designed to provide exposure to the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index Total Return. During the class period, defendants made materially false and misleading statements and failed to disclose material information about Barclays’ heightened risk of selling unregistered securities, the over-issuance of securities by BBPLC, and the strength of Barclays internal controls and procedures.
Specifically, as of December 31, 2019, Barclays had a material weakness in its internal control environment due to the fact that it had no control in place to identify any over-issuance that occurred and would not be immediately identified. Further, defendants failed to disclose that (i) BBPLC may be selling unregistered securities in excess of the amounts registered by the 2018 and 2019 Shelf Registration Statements, (ii) BBPLC was violating U.S. securities laws and/or SEC regulations, and (iii) BBPLC would be required to conduct a rescission offer for those unregistered securities.
What Now: Similarly situated shareholders may be eligible to participate in the class action against Barclays PLC. Shareholders who want to act as lead plaintiff for the class must file their papers by August 7, 2023. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. You do not have to participate in the case to be eligible for a recovery. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member.
All representation is on a contingency fee basis. Shareholders pay no fees or expenses.
