Securities Fraud

SEC Files Charges in Massachusetts Pump-And-Dump Scam, International Microcap Fraud, and Issues Investor Alert

Published on: November 7, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed charges against California Attorney Richard Weed, Coleman Flaherty, and Thomas Brazil. The regulator contends that Weed facilitated a pump and dump scam involving CitySide Tickets Inc. stock that allowed Flaherty and Brazil to get millions of supposedly unrestricted shares.

Investors were barraged with a misleading and false promotional campaign presenting CitySide Tickets as a company in the verge of expansion and success. As the stock price went up, Flaherty and Brazil sold their shares to investors, causing the two of them to make about $3 million in illicit proceeds. Weed purportedly was well compensated for the role that he played.

The Commission charges the three men with violating federal securities laws’ antifraud provisions and related rules. The agency wants disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, interest, penalties, permanent injunctions against further violations, and penny stock bars. Meantime, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts has filed a parallel criminal case against Flaherty, Brazil, and Weed.

SEC Fines E*TRADE Subsidiaries Over $1M Penalty for Unregistered Microcap Securities Sales, Puts Out Risk Alert Regarding Broker-Dealer Duties To Clients

Published on: October 25, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Earlier this month, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission put out a Risk Alert reminding brokerage firms about their duties when they take part in unregistered transactions for customers. The guidance came, along with the announcement that the agency had filed an enforcement action against former and current E*TRADE Financial Corporation (ETFC) brokerage subsidiaries that did not successfully act as gatekeepers and improperly engaged in the unregistered sales of microcap stock for customers.

According to the SEC, E*TRADE Capital Markets and E*TRADE Securities sold billions of penny stock shares for customers between 2007 and 2011. During this time, there were numerous occasions when they disregarded red flags indicating that the offerings were taking place without an applicable exemption from federal securities laws’ registration provisions.

The two brokerage firms consented to repay over $1.5 million in disgorgement plus prejudgment interest from commissions they made on the improper sales. They also have to pay a $1 million combined penalty.

During Fiscal Year 2014, SEC Files Record Number of Enforcement Actions

Published on: October 22, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the agency filed a record number of enforcement actions in 2014. Concluding the fiscal year on September 30, the regulator announced that it filed 755 SEC enforcement actions and obtained orders of $4.16 billion in disgorgement and penalties. Last year, the agency filed 686 actions and brought in $3.4 billion in fines.

The SEC credited new investigative strategies and innovations with analytical tools and data as playing a part in contributing to what it considers a solid year for enforcement. There were also first-ever cases, including actions over market access rules, “pay-to-play” for investment advisers, whistleblower retaliation, and stopping a municipal bond offering.

During fiscal year 2014, the SEC said that it charged over 135 parties with reporting and disclosure-related actions, focused resources on fighting microcap fraud and market manipulation-including penny stock scams-fought international fraud schemes, pursued firms for not setting up adequate risk controls, obtained the biggest penalty yet against an alternative trading system, enhanced oversight of dark pools, and imposed penalties for net capital rule violations.

SEC Wants to Bar Ex-Broker for Allegedly Misappropriating $2M

Published on: October 17, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has taken action to bar Paul Marshall, an ex-investment adviser and broker from the industry. Marshall is accused of misappropriating $2M in client assets.

Last year, the SEC charged him and his related investment advisers, Bridge Securities and Bridge Equity Inc., with fraud. The regulator contends that Marshall took client assets to cover his own spending, including child support, alimony, expensive vacations, and tuition for his kids. He purportedly diverted the money into accounts under his control, set up misleading account statements, and raised cash for FOGFuels Inc., a private placement he controlled.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. has already barred Marshall from associating with all brokerage member firms. Last month, the SEC ordered him to pay $15 million in disgorgement because of the money he made from the alleged securities scam.

Securities Fraud: Ex-Ameriprise Adviser to Pay $3M for Ponzi Scam, Four Insurance Agents Allegedly Defrauded Senior Investors, and Trading in Nine Penny Stocks is Suspended

Published on: October 8, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Former Ameriprise Adviser Ordered to Jail, Must Pay $3M Restitution

Oscar Donald Overbey Jr., an ex-Ameriprise Financial Services (AMP) financial adviser, must pay back the $3 million he allegedly stole from investors while operating a Ponzi scam. The 47-year-old has been sentenced to three and a half years behind bars.

Court documents say that from 1996 into 2007, Overbey stole about $4 million of client funds that he was supposed to invest. Instead, the money was used to pay earlier investors, cover his personal expenses, and pay off his gambling debts.

Former Axa Advisors Broker Faces SEC Charges Over Alleged $1.5M Ponzi Scam

Published on: September 30, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The SEC is charging Dennis Wright, an ex-Axa Advisors broker, with operating a Ponzi scam for 14 years and bilking customers of $1.5 million. According to the regulator, from 1998 and into 2012, Wright allegedly persuaded at least 28 customers to take money out of Axa variable annuity accounts under the guise that he would move the money to mutual fund accounts that had higher returns and also were run by the brokerage firm.

The Commission claims that rather than invest clients’ money, what ended up happening is that Wright put the money into a bank account under his control and used the funds to pay other investors. The SEC says that Wright purposely manipulated Axa Advisor clients so he could steal their savings. Alleged victims included members of Wright’s community, including childhood friends, and unsophisticated investors.

Axa Advisors let Wright go in 2012 after the firm found out about the alleged fraud. Axa has since paid back the customers whose funds were misappropriated.

SEC Approves FINRA Arbitration Fees, SRO Proposes Rule For CARDS

Published on: September 29, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has approved a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. proposal to up the pay for arbitrators. The rule change will increase how much it will cost to file securities arbitration claims, as well as processing fees, surcharge, and hearing session fees for bigger cases.

The changes would only impact claims involving over $250,000, with fees per hearing session going up by $100 to $300 depending on how big the claim. Filing fees would go up 10% to 25%, again depending on the claim’s size.

FINRA has not upped its fees since 1999. Under the proposed rule, arbitrators of these larger cases would get paid $300 for every hearing session, while the chairman would get another $125 a day. With the proposal, the self-regulatory organization would be bringing in $4 million to $5.6 million annually.

SEC News: Regulator Grants $30M Whistleblower Award and Charges Washington Investment Advisory Firm $600K for Undisclosed Principal Transaction, False Advertising

Published on: September 23, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Whistleblower to Get Over $30M Award in SEC Case

In its largest whistleblower award yet, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will pay a bounty of over $30 million to an informant. Seeing that a whistleblower may be entitled to 10-30% of the amount recovered under the Dodd-Frank program, if the quality, unique information the person provided led to an enforcement action resulting in sanctions of over $1 million, a huge sum was obviously recovered.

In this particular case, the whistleblower resides abroad. Andrew Ceresney, SEC Enforcement Division Director, said that the individual brought the agency information about a fraud that otherwise would have been very hard to detect. He stated that whistleblowers anywhere in the world should see this latest award as incentive to report possible violations involving U.S. securities fraud.

Man to Pay $40.4M for Texas Securities Fraud Involving Bitcoin Ponzi Scam

Published on: September 20, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Trendon T. Shavers, who is accused of operating a Texas Ponzi scam involving a Bitcoin scheme he operated from his residence must pay more than $40.4 million. The SEC filed a securities fraud case against him and his company Bitcoin Savings & Trust last year and sought disgorgement.

According to the regulator, Shavers, a Texas resident, raised more than 700,000 bitcoins while promising investors interest as high as 7% weekly. The allegedly fraudulent activities lasted from November 2011 through August 2012 when the Ponzi scam collapsed.

In a promo that he posted on online, Shavers solicited lenders, offering 1% interest daily for loans involving at least 50 bitcoins. He also published posts touting nearly zero risk, claiming that the business was doing exceptionally well. When his Texas securities scam failed, Shavers showed preference to longtime investors and friends when giving out redemptions.

FINRA Fines Minneapolis Broker-Dealer $1M for Inadequate Supervision of Penny Stocks

Published on: September 13, 2014 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has issued an enforcement action charging Feltl & Company for not notifying certain customers of the suitability and risks involving certain penny-stock transactions, as well as for failing to issue customer account statements showing each penny stock’s market value. The brokerage firm is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

FINRA claims that the firm failed to properly document transactions for securities that temporarily may not have fulfilled the definition of a penny stock and did not properly track penny-stock transactions involving securities that didn’t make a market.

Feltl made a market in nearly twenty penny stocks. The brokerage firm made $2.1 million from at least 2,450 customer transactions that were solicited in 15 penny stocks between 2008 and 2012. The SRO says it isn’t clear how much the firm made from selling penny stocks that it didn’t keep track of but that revenue from this would have been substantial.