SEC Files Charges Against Ralph Pirtle and Morando Berrettini for Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 25, 2015 that on September 24, 2015, a jury in federal district court in Chicago, Illinois, returned a verdict finding Ralph J. Pirtle and Morando Berrettini responsible for insider… Read More
SEC Charges GenAudio and CEO With Fraudulent Stock Offerings
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil injunctive action on September 25, 2015, in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado relating to the fraudulent offer and sale of stock in GenAudio, Inc. The SEC… Read More
SEC Charges Six in Securities Fraud Scheme
On September 24, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged six men, including a father and three sons, with securities fraud associated with Gerova Financial Group Ltd., whose shares once traded on the New York Stock Exchange. In a parallel… Read More
$32 Million Amber Mining Pyramid Scheme Halted by the SEC
On October 1, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced it had frozen the assets and filed fraud charges against the operator of a worldwide pyramid scheme who falsely promised investors that they would profit from a… Read More
FINRA Expels Halcyon Cabot Partners
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced today that it has expelled Halcyon Cabot Partners, Ltd., and barred Chief Executive Officer Michael Morris and Chief Compliance Officer Ronald Heineman from the securities industry, for securities fraud, sales practice… Read More
SEC Settles Aiding and Abetting Charges Against Joseph Apuzzo
On September 8, 2015, Judge Alvin Thompson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut entered a judgment against Joseph Apuzzo, former Chief Financial Officer of Terex Corporation. Apuzzo consented, without admitting or denying the allegations… Read More
Anthony Knight Barred, Enjoined, and Fined for Unregistered Securities
On Thursday, September 3, 2015, United States District Court Judge Denis R. Hurley of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued an order and judgment imposing relief against Defendant Anthony Knight, the… Read More
Consultant Charged With Insider Trading
On September 23, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a consultant and his friend with insider trading in the options of P.F. Chang’s China Bistro based on nonpublic information about an impending acquisition offer. The SEC… Read More
SEC Announces New Resource – Going Public Attorneys
Posted By the Going Public Attorneys On September 24, 2015, the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a new resource on its website that is designed to enhance transparency by providing information about the SEC proposals and rulemaking… Read More
Former Fannie Mae Executives Resolve Subprime and Reduced Documentation Disclosure Case with SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 22, 2015 that the Honorable Paul A. Crotty of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York has entered an Order approving a stipulation and… Read More
SEC v. Two Men Who Defrauded Investors
On September 21, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged two men behind a scheme that defrauded investors in YaFarm Technologies Inc., a company that purported to provide stem cell therapy. The SEC’s complaint filed in federal… Read More
SEC Charges Penny Stock Company and CEO with Fraud and Issuing a False Press Release
On September 15, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a microcap issuer, The Mobile Star Corporation, and its CEO George Ivakhnik, with defrauding investors by issuing false press releases about the company’s business and prospects…. Read More
SEC Obtains Final Judgement Against Julio Cruz for Targeting Latino Communities with Pyramid Scheme
On September 17, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that on September 16, 2015, the federal court in Boston, Massachusetts, entered a final judgment against defendant Julio Cruz of Duluth, Georgia, a defendant in a previously-filed… Read More
James Meagher Enjoined in Penny Stock Case
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 16, 2015 that Chief Judge Gregory M. Sleet of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware entered a final default judgment against Defendant James Meagher on… Read More
SEC Charges Robert Milligan With Securities Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 18, 2015 charges against Robert DeWayne Milligan, who was president of a California-based business known as America’s Natural Energy (“ANE”), for engaging in the fraudulent offering of unregistered securities…. Read More
Eric McPhail Sentenced in Insider Trading Action
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that, on September 18, 2015, Eric McPhail was sentenced to 18 months in prison and two years of supervised release for his role in an insider trading ring that traded inside information… Read More
SEC Charges Florida Based CPA For Bogus Audit Opinions
On September 17, 2015 the SEC imposed sanctions against a Florida based CPA for producing deficient and fraudulent audits and quarterly reviews for eight publicly traded companies, issuing false and misleading audit opinions on the companies’ annual… Read More
U3 Halt of SWK Holdings Explained by FINRA, and Lifted Quickly
We recently wrote about a bungled dividend distribution made by Calissio Resources Group, Inc. (CRGP) that resulted in the imposition of a U3 “extraordinary event” trading halt by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”). The halt was lifted… Read More
FINRA’s Disclosure Requirements In EB-5 Offerings
FINRA Rule 2040 became effective late last month and has the potential to provide increased transparency in EB-5 Offerings. Rule 2040 requires broker-dealers who sell securities in EB-5 offerings to disclose finder’s fees paid to non-registered foreign persons and receive… Read More
Investor Alert – Messaging Apps & Pump and Dump Scams
On September 2, 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued an investor alert warning about investor relations activity and stock promotions sent through popular messaging applications (Apps) such as WhatsApp. These messaging Apps allow users to almost… Read More
MusclePharm Charged In SEC Investigation
On September 8, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a sports supplements and nutrition company with committing a series of accounting and disclosure violations, including the failure to properly report perks provided to its executives as… Read More
SEC Charges Bankrate and Former Executives with Securities Fraud
On September 8, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that Bankrate Inc. has agreed to pay $15 million to settle accounting and securities fraud charges. Three former executives also are charged in the case that involves… Read More
SEC Charges Ross Shapiro, Michael Gramis, and Tyler Peters With Fraud
On September 9, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced fraud charges against three traders accused of repeatedly lying to customers relying on them for honest and accurate pricing information about residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The SEC… Read More
Regulation A+ DPO Attorneys – Going Public Attorneys
Most private companies are unable to locate an underwriter prior to going public. Regulation A+ provides a new option for issuers seeking to raise capital without an underwriter. A direct public offering (“Direct Public Offering”) provides a viable… Read More
SEC Charges Manny Shulman and David Hirschman
On September 3, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged Manny J. Shulman and David Hirschman for their involvement in the fraudulent, unregistered sale of securities of Caribbean Pacific Marketing, Inc. (“Caribbean Pacific”), a now-defunct Florida corporation… Read More
SEC Charges Bank Analyst Ashish Aggarwal With Insider Trading
On August 25th, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a former investment bank analyst with illegally tipping his close friend with confidential information about clients involved in impending mergers and acquisitions of technology companies. The SEC… Read More
