RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund

The purpose of the Plan Notice is to inform you that you may be eligible to share in the proceeds of the RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund. To be potentially eligible to share in the RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund, you must file a Claim Form in accordance with the steps set forth on this website here, in the Plan Notice, and in the Plan of Distribution (the “Plan”) approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”).

A copy of the Plan Notice can be found here.

On November 7, 2013, the SEC brought suit against Defendant RBS Securities Inc., formerly known as Greenwich Capital Markets, Inc. In its Complaint, the SEC alleged that RBS misrepresented and omitted certain material facts in promoting its $2.2 billion offering of a subprime residential mortgage-backed security. Specifically, the SEC alleged that RBS misled investors about the quality and safety of their investments by claiming that the subprime loans backing the multi-billion dollar offering were “generally” in compliance with the lender’s underwriting guidelines when, in fact, RBS knew or should have known at the time that almost 30% of the loans backing the offering deviated so much from the lender’s underwriting guidelines that they should have been kicked out of the offering entirely.

Pursuant to the Final Judgment as to Defendant RBS Securities Inc. (the “Final Judgment”) dated November 25, 2013, RBS consented to entry of a judgment for violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C. §§77q(a)(2) and (a)(3), and agreed to pay disgorgement of $80,352,639, prejudgment interest of $25,190,552 and a civil penalty of $48,211,583. The Final Judgment provided for the SEC to hold all funds paid, together with interest and income earned thereon (collectively, the “Fund”), pending further Court order.

On May 21, 2015, the Court entered an order that established the Fair Fund, pursuant to Section 308(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as amended, for the monies paid by Defendant and appointed Garden City Group, LLC (“GCG”) as the Distribution Agent (the “Appointment Order”). GCG has since been acquired by Epiq Class Action and Claims Solutions, Inc.

The Defendant has paid a total of $153,754,774.00 and has fully satisfied its judgment. The Fair Fund has been deposited at the United States Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service (“BFS”) for investment. It is not anticipated that the Fair Fund will receive additional funds, other than accumulated interest and earnings from investments.

To qualify for a payment from the RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund, you must satisfy certain eligibility criteria that are described in detail in the Plan. The Plan can be found under the Important Documents page. You can also request a copy of the Plan by calling the Distribution Agent at 1-877-940-1507 or by emailing info@RBSSecuritiesFairFund.com. The eligibility criteria include the following:

• If you are an investor in the Soundview Home Loan Trust Asset 2007-OPT1 (“Soundview Trust”) who a) purchased Eligible Certificates in the initial offering or purchased on the secondary market from May 4, 2007 through and including August 27, 2007 (the “Eligible Purchase Period”), and b) held the Eligible Certificates through August 27, 2007.
• Your approved transactions must calculate to a Recognized Claim Amount as calculated under the Plan and your Distribution Payment must equal or exceed $250.00.

Please Note: Receipt of the Plan Notice does not mean that you are an Eligible Claimant as that term is defined in the Plan.

You are excluded from participation in the RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund, if you are an Excluded Party as defined in the Plan, including:

• The Defendant;
• Present or former officers or directors of Defendant (during the period 2007 to the present) or any assigns, creditors, heirs, distributees, spouses, parents, dependent children or controlled entities of any of the foregoing Persons or entities;
• Any employee or former employee of the Defendant or any of its affiliates who has been terminated for cause or has otherwise resigned, in connection with the conduct alleged in the Complaint;
• Any Person who, as of the Claims Bar Date, has been the subject of criminal charges related to the conduct alleged in the Complaint or any related Commission action;
• Any firm, trust, corporation, officer, or other entity in which Defendant has or had a controlling interest;
• The Distribution Agent, its employees, and those Persons assisting the Distribution Agent in its role as the Distribution Agent; or
• Any purchaser or assignee of another Person’s right to obtain a recovery from the Fair Fund for value; provided, however, that this provision shall not be construed to exclude those Persons who obtained such a right by gift, inheritance or devise.

On May 21, 2015, the Court appointed Garden City Group, LLC, which has since been acquired by Epiq Class Action & Claims Solutions, Inc. (“Epiq”) as the Distribution Agent.

“Eligible Purchase Period” means from the time of the initial offering of the Eligible Certificates on May 4, 2007 through and including August 27, 2007, the date of the issuance of the August 2007 monthly distribution report to investors by the securities administrator for the Soundview Trust.

Pursuant to the Final Judgment as to Defendant RBS Securities Inc. (the “Final Judgment”) dated November 25, 2013, RBS consented to entry of a judgment for violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C. §§77q(a)(2) and (a)(3), and agreed to pay disgorgement of $80,352,639, prejudgment interest of $25,190,552 and a civil penalty of $48,211,583, for a total of $153,754,774. The Fair Fund has been deposited at the United States Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Services.

To participate in the Fair Fund, you must timely mail (or submit online) a completed and signed Claim Form with supporting documents to:

RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund
c/o Epiq
P.O. Box 2017
Portland, OR 97208-2017

A Claim Form was included with the Plan Notice and is available for download here. If you do not complete and timely submit a Claim Form, you will not be considered for eligibility to receive a Distribution Payment under the Plan.

The completed and signed Claim Form, with supporting documentation, must be postmarked to the above address, or, if not sent by U.S. mail, received by the Distribution Agent, or submitted online through this website by October 31, 2023. Claims postmarked, or, if not sent by U.S. mail, received after October 31, 2023 will not be eligible to participate in the distribution of the RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund.

Please note that filing a Claim Form does not assure that you will share in the proceeds of the Fair Fund created in this matter. A Potential Claimant’s eligibility for a Distribution Payment under the Plan will be determined by the Distribution Agent in accordance with the Plan.

Acceptable documentation must include the name of the owner or owners of the account for which you are filing a claim, the name of the broker through whom the security was traded, trade date, number of shares purchased, acquired and/or sold, and price paid (excluding brokers’ commissions, taxes and fees).

Acceptable documentation includes contract notes, brokers’ confirmation slips, account activity pages from brokers’ computer printouts (including the front page), or account activity pages from brokers’ monthly statements (including the front page), if those statements contain the required information. Your own records or certificates DO NOT constitute acceptable documentation. We cannot pre-approve any documentation as acceptable without seeing it first.

Depending on how you acquired your investment in Soundview Trust, you can generally obtain the necessary documentation to submit with a Claim Form from:

1. your broker;
2. your tax advisor; and/or
3. the person/party from whom you purchased, or through whom you sold, the security.

Acceptable supporting documentation must be included with your completed Claim Form, or your claim may be rejected.

Most brokerage firms and financial institutions assign account numbers to your account for easier reference. This number is typically included on the statements you receive.

The deadline to submit a completed and signed Claim Form with the necessary documentation is October 31, 2023. The Claim Form must be postmarked, or, if not sent by U.S. mail, received by the Distribution Agent, or submitted online through this website by this date.

Yes. If your Claim Form is deficient, you will receive a Claim Status Notice setting forth the reason why the claim is deficient and advising you of the opportunity to cure such deficiency. The Claim Status Notice will also notify the Preliminary Claimant of the opportunity to request reconsideration or dispute the determination made by the Distribution Agent.

Until all claims have been fully processed, it is not possible to determine the amount of any individual payment because the amount will depend on a variety of factors, including the number of valid claims processed and the details of your specific investment(s). In order for a claim to be paid, the Distribution Payment must equal or exceed $250.00.

As a long-established firm, Epiq's electronic systems, software applications, and employee and operational protocols are all designed to protect and secure the case information provided to us. Further, Epiq is obligated to fulfill the security requirements mandated by the various court jurisdictions and governmental entities that oversee the various types of cases it administers.

You may contact the Distribution Agent by calling 1-877-940-1507 (Toll-Free), sending an email to info@RBSSecuritiesFairFund.com, or by writing to RBS Securities Inc. Fair Fund, c/o Epiq, P.O. Box 2017, Portland, OR 97208-2017 for more information.

Soundview Home Loan Trust Asset 2007-OPT1 ("Soundview Trust") Eligible Certificates CUSIP Numbers are: 83612TAA0, 83612TAB8, 83612TAC6, 83612TAD4, 83612TAE2, 83612TAF9, 83612TAG7, 83612TAH5, 83612TAJ1, 83612TAK8, 83612TAL6, 83612TAM4, 83612TAN2, 83612TAP7, and 83612TAQ5.