Vitter praises SEC’s reported decision to go to court for investors

{mosads}While SIPC insures brokerage accounts to up to $500,000 from fraud, it originally determined that victims of Stanford did not qualify for payment. Rather, it determined that the financial mismanagement had left investors with worthless investments, not missing ones.

The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the SEC had decided to sue SIPC to force payments to victims, citing people familiar with the matter.

A large number of Stanford’s victims are from Louisiana, and Vitter has for months been critical of SIPC and the SEC for failing to force compensation. But the decision to go to court earned his praise.

“Many folks in Louisiana and along the Gulf region lost their life savings, and it’s time to get even tougher in our fight for the victims,” he said. “I’ve been urging SIPC Chairman Johnson to act quickly for months but the victims still haven’t received an up-or-down answer.  This move by the SEC is encouraging and should significantly help the process.”