If Matthew Wilkes was your financial advisor, you should know what public records show. FINRA BrokerCheck discloses over $6.8 million in pending customer arbitration claims against Wilkes, a former broker who spent 15 years at firms including Wells Fargo, Raymond James, and TrustFirst before registering as an investment advisor in Tennessee.
The allegations are not about market volatility. They center on a specific and complex product: premium-financed life insurance. Multiple customers claim Wilkes recommended these policies without adequately explaining the risks — and that the recommendations were unsuitable for their financial situations.
Who is Matthew Wilkes
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Matthew Kenneth Wilkes holds CRD number 5409004. He has been in the securities industry since 2007 and previously held registrations at Chase Investment Services, NatCity Investments, PNC Investments, Wells Fargo Advisors, Raymond James Financial Services, FSIC, and TrustFirst. His most recent broker-dealer registration ended in October 2023 when he left TrustFirst.
As of early 2024, Wilkes is registered as an investment advisor with Greensview Wealth Management in Franklin, Tennessee. He is no longer registered as a broker with FINRA as of August 2024. He also operates under the business name Wilkes Corrigan Wealth Advisors.
Wilkes has passed multiple securities exams, including Series 7, 6, 24, 63, 65, and SIE. No formal FINRA disciplinary sanctions appear on his record. However, BrokerCheck does disclose customer disputes — and the dollar amounts are significant.
The pending arbitration claims
Two separate FINRA arbitration claims were filed against Wilkes in early 2024. Both involve premium-financed life insurance policies.
| Filing date | Damages sought | Firm at time of conduct | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2024 | $4,171,885 | Raymond James Financial Services | Pending |
| February 2024 | $2,680,220.14 | Wells Fargo Clearing Services | Pending |
| Total pending | $6,852,105.14 | — | — |
Sources: FINRA BrokerCheck (CRD# 5409004); Carlson Law; Wolper Law Firm; KlaymanToskes. Dollar amounts are damages sought, not awarded. Claims remain pending as of early 2024 and may be subject to settlement or further proceedings.
What the claimants allege
The January 2024 claim, filed by a Raymond James customer, alleges that Wilkes recommended an unsuitable premium-financed life insurance policy, failed to properly explain its risks, and later made an unsuitable recommendation to change insurance providers. The customer seeks $4.17 million in damages.
The February 2024 claim, filed by a Wells Fargo customer, alleges unsuitable investment recommendations tied to a premium-financed life insurance strategy conducted in 2015. The claimant argues the strategy was unsuitable given the investor’s risk tolerance and seeks $2.68 million in damages.
In addition to these pending claims, Wilkes settled a 2015 customer dispute for $25,378.11. That customer alleged Wilkes failed to properly represent the financial impact of changing investment platforms from Wealth (IFS) to Brokerage (Private Advisor Network) while at Wells Fargo.
Why premium-financed life insurance is high risk
Premium-financed life insurance is not a standard term policy. It involves a third-party lender providing loans to cover annual premiums on universal life or indexed universal life policies. The policy’s cash value accumulation is supposed to eventually repay the loan. The cash value itself may serve as collateral.
Brokers market these products as tax-efficient estate planning tools. In reality, they are suitable only for a narrow segment of high-net-worth investors with specific liquidity needs. For most investors, the risks outweigh the benefits.
| Risk factor | What can go wrong |
|---|---|
| High-interest loans | Loan rates accumulate faster than policy cash value growth, creating debt that exceeds the policy’s value |
| Collateral lockup | Assets pledged as collateral become illiquid; margin calls can force liquidation |
| Optimistic projections | Illustrations assume unrealistic market returns; shortfalls trigger massive out-of-pocket payments |
| Policy churning | Brokers push replacing existing policies to earn commissions, increasing costs |
| Hidden terms | Verbal promises like “pays for itself” may not appear in the written contract |
FINRA Rule 2111 requires brokers to have a reasonable basis for recommending any investment strategy. When a broker recommends premium-financed life insurance without fully explaining these risks — or recommends it to an investor who cannot absorb the potential losses — the recommendation may be unsuitable.
Red flags in the Wilkes complaints
The allegations against Wilkes follow a pattern that securities attorneys see repeatedly. Customers claim they were sold complex insurance-based strategies without understanding the underlying loan obligations, collateral requirements, or exit scenarios.
Key red flags in the disclosed complaints include:
Unsuitable product recommendation. Premium-financed life insurance is designed for a narrow audience. If a broker recommends it to an investor without the liquidity to handle interest rate increases or collateral calls, the recommendation may violate FINRA’s suitability rule.
Inadequate risk disclosure. Customers allege Wilkes did not properly explain how the policies worked or what could go wrong. FINRA requires brokers to disclose material risks before a customer commits capital.
Recommendations to change providers. One complaint alleges Wilkes recommended changing insurance providers after the initial policy was already in place. Frequent switching can generate commissions for the broker while increasing costs and complexity for the investor.
Platform change misrepresentation. The settled 2015 complaint involved allegations that Wilkes failed to explain how moving from one investment platform to another would affect the customer’s finances. This raises questions about whether the broker prioritized internal firm transitions over the customer’s best interest.
What investors should do now
If Matthew Wilkes was your advisor — at Wells Fargo, Raymond James, TrustFirst, or elsewhere — and you invested in premium-financed life insurance or experienced losses you do not fully understand, you have options.
The first step is documentation. Gather your account statements, policy documents, loan agreements, and any correspondence with Wilkes or his firms. Note the dates of recommendations and any verbal promises that were not reflected in writing.
Second, check your BrokerCheck record. Visit brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/5409004 to view Wilkes’ full disclosure history, including the pending claims and the 2015 settlement.
Third, understand your time limits. FINRA Rule 12206 requires arbitration claims to be filed within six years of the event giving rise to the claim. The clock may already be running on the 2015 conduct, depending on when you discovered the alleged misconduct.
Fourth, speak with a securities arbitration attorney. An experienced attorney can review your specific situation, determine whether you have a viable claim, and help you decide whether to file a FINRA arbitration.
How we can help
Haselkorn & Thibaut, P.A., operating as Investment Fraud Lawyers, represents investors who have suffered losses from unsuitable recommendations, broker misconduct, and fraudulent schemes. Our partners are former Wall Street defense attorneys. We spent decades inside the firms that are now defending these cases. We know how they think, how they prepare, and where they are vulnerable.
Our firm has handled securities cases valued at over $520 million. We maintain a 98 percent success rate for investors and a Top 2 percent peer-reviewed rating from Martindale-Hubbell. We take cases on a contingency basis: no recovery, no fee.
If you or a family member invested with Matthew Wilkes or any advisor at Wells Fargo, Raymond James, or TrustFirst and suffered losses from premium-financed life insurance or unsuitable investment strategies, call us at 1-888-885-7162. You can also reach us through our Florida office at (561) 556-2203, our New York office at (332) 286-4055, or any of our offices in Arizona, Texas, or North Carolina.
