An Ontario rep falsified account statements and used client funds to cover his tracks – until a complaint exposed a five-year scheme
The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) has permanently banned a former TD Investment Services representative in Toronto after he admitted to misappropriating $214,500 from two clients.
A hearing panel of the CIRO accepted a settlement agreement on June 29, 2026 with George Alexander Abisaleh. He admitted to violating CIRO’s Mutual Fund Dealer Rules between April 2017 and July 2022.
Elderly client targeted over five years
According to the settlement, Abisaleh began misappropriating funds in 2017 by transferring money from the bank and investment accounts of a 77-year-old client into his own personal investment accounts. After the client moved into long-term care in March 2019, a power of attorney took over the client’s finances. Abisaleh then concealed the transfers by providing falsified bank and investment account statements.
Most of the $214,500 taken from the elderly client was directed into his personal investment accounts, where he purchased options and depleted the funds. Some of the money was also used to repay a second client from whom he had taken $51,500 in 2022.
The case echoes a pattern CIRO has pursued consistently. A Nanaimo advisor was permanently banned in a separate misappropriation case involving nearly $1.3 million.
Termination and partial repayment
Abisaleh was terminated by the bank on July 4, 2022, for reasons the settlement describes as unrelated to the misappropriation. Within days, one of his former clients filed a complaint with the bank about missing account funds.
On July 7, 2022, Abisaleh purchased a bank draft for $51,509 from his own account and deposited those funds into the client’s account to cover the earlier misappropriation. The settlement noted that TD Investment Services Inc. paid compensation to the elderly client.
Sanctions as part of CIRO enforcement
Under the settlement, Abisaleh agreed to:
- a permanent prohibition from conducting securities-related business in any capacity while employed by or associated with any CIRO Dealer Member
- a fine of $50,000
- disgorgement of $214,500
- costs of $10,000
Abisaleh is not currently registered in the securities industry in any capacity.
What this means for advisors
For wealth professionals, the case is a reminder of how misconduct of this kind unfolds and how it is detected.
Abisaleh operated across both registered and unregistered roles at the same dealer over seven years, maintaining client relationships that gave him continued access to accounts. The power of attorney in this case only contacted him in February 2022 – nearly five years into the scheme – and received falsified statements in response. A client complaint to the bank in July 2022 ultimately triggered the unravelling.
CIRO’s enforcement activity in this area has been sustained – a single round of misappropriation rulings in 2025 produced more than $2.5 million in fines.
The case also intersects with CIRO’s Disgorgement Distribution Program, launched in April 2026, which creates a formal process for returning enforcement-collected funds to harmed investors.
Advisors can verify the disciplinary history of any industry registrant through CIRO’s free AdvisorReport service.
With financial fraud prosecutions on the rise, Canadian advisors need to stay ahead. Bookmark our industry news section for ongoing coverage of enforcement actions that affect your practice
