The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday, June 30, edition that independent wealth manager Ventum Financial has reached a $2.3-million settlement agreement with regulators after confirming that it failed to supervise trading in U.S. over-the-counter stocks. The Globe's Clare O'Hara writes that after a hearing, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization, or CIRO, accepted a settlement agreement with Ventum Financial -- formerly known as Echelon Wealth Partners -- and Stephen Burns, an investment adviser and former managing director at Echelon. According to the settlement, Ventum Financial admitted that between July, 2018, and June, 2022, it broke industry rules by failing to do due diligence on four customers -- all foreign brokerage companies -- that used accounts at the dealer to trade heavily in U.S. OTC stocks. OTC shares are often targets for stock-manipulation schemes. Regulators in the U.S. and Canada warn that fraudsters promote these stocks, inflate prices, and sell before a crash. An agreement noted that Ventum Financial failed to conduct due diligence regarding four Caribbean-based customers: Financials Worldwide, Weiser Asset Management, Blacktower and Valor Capital.