SEC Charges 10 Individuals in Scheme to Sell Stock in Blank Check Companies Secretly Bound for Reverse Mergers
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against 10 individuals involved in a scheme to offer and sell penny stock in undisclosed “blank check” companies bound for reverse mergers while misrepresenting to the public that they were promising startups with business plans. Blank check companies generally have no operations and no value other than their status as a registered entity, which makes them attractive targets for unscrupulous individuals seeking reverse mergers with clean shells ripe for pump-and-dump schemes. The federal securities laws impose various requirements on blank check companies to prevent such illicit use. The SEC alleges that…
Read MoreSEC Charges New York-Based Financial Advisor With Stealing $20 Million From Customers
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against a New York City-based financial advisor accused of stealing at least $20 million from customers to fund his own brokerage accounts and then squandering the bulk of the money in highly unprofitable options trading. The SEC alleges that Michael J. Oppenheim abused his position as a private client advisor at a global bank and persuaded some customers to withdraw millions of dollars out of their accounts by promising he would purchase safe and secure municipal bonds on their behalf. Instead, Oppenheim bought himself cashier’s checks and deposited them into his…
Read MoreSEC Staff and FINRA Issue Report on National Senior Investor Initiative
With the Social Security Administration estimating that each day for the next 15 years, an average of 10,000 Americans will turn 65, the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) today issued a report to help broker-dealers assess, craft, or refine their policies and procedures for investors as they prepare for and enter into retirement. The National Senior Investor Initiative report includes observations and practices identified in examinations that focused on how firms conduct business with senior investors. The examinations by the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) and…
Read MoreSEC Halts Investment Scheme Targeting Military Personnel
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges and an asset freeze against a man living in central Texas accused of telling false tales about his stockbroking experience to lure current and former U.S. military personnel into investing with him. The SEC alleges that Leroy Brown Jr. touted his own military connection as an Army veteran while soliciting members of the military and other investors through his firm LB Stocks and Trades Advice LLC. Brown falsely assured investors, including some stationed at nearby Fort Hood, that he had many years of experience in the securities markets. He specifically claimed…
Read MoreSEC Announces Fraud Charges Against Former Accounting Executive at Japanese Subsidiary
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against the former controller of a suburban Chicago company’s Japanese subsidiary who cost his company millions of dollars in trading losses and manipulated accounting records to avoid detection. The SEC alleges that Katsuichi Fusamae, who was a senior accounting officer at Molex Japan Co. Ltd., engaged in unauthorized equity trading in the company’s brokerage accounts that resulted in losses of more than $110 million. He concealed the massive trading losses by taking out unauthorized and undisclosed company loans with Japanese banks and brokerage firms, and he used loan proceeds to replenish…
Read More