Morgan Stanley hit with $90K fine for muni-bond pricing

Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay a $90,000 fine to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. to settle charges that it traded municipal bonds at unfair prices. The fine covered 11 corporate-bond trades and three muni-securities trades made in 2003. Markups or markdowns listed in Finra's complaint ranged from 5.25% to 24.3%. In addition to paying the fine, the firm agreed to make restitution to investors of nearly $41,000. Morgan Stanley agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying the findings. The settlement was reached with Finra in August, but it wasn't announced by Finra until this month. “We don't comment on regulatory matters,” said Eric Grossman, managing director at Morgan Stanley, when asked about the Finra fine. E-mail Sara Hansard at shansard@investmentnews.com.