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SEC charges Bitcoin promoter with offering unregistered securities

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the co-owner of two Bitcoin-related websites for publicly offering shares in the two ventures without registering them.   An SEC investigation found that Erik T. Voorhees published prospectuses on the Internet and actively solicited investors to buy shares in SatoshiDICE and FeedZeBirds.  But he failed to register the offerings […]

SEC halts Ponzi scheme targeting Dominican and Brazilian immigrants

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that on Tuesday it filed charges against the Massachusetts-based operators of a large pyramid scheme that mainly targeted Dominican and Brazilian immigrants in the U.S.  The charges were filed under seal, in connection with the Commission’s request for an immediate asset freeze.  That asset freeze, which the U.S. […]

SEC stops pyramid scheme targeting Asian and Latino communities

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges and asset freezes against the operators of a worldwide pyramid scheme targeting Asian and Latino communities in the U.S. and abroad.  The SEC alleges that three entities collectively operating under the business names WCM and WCM777 are posing as multi-level marketing companies in the business of selling […]

SEC issues alert on Investment Adviser due diligence of alternative investments

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) today issued a Risk Alert on the due diligence processes that investment advisers use when they recommend or place clients’ assets in alternative investments such as hedge funds, private equity funds, or funds of private funds. The alert describes current industry trends and […]

Former broker ordered to pay $5.6 Million for insider trades

The Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final judgment against a former registered representative who misappropriated material nonpublic information from his customer and used it to trade Burger King Holding, Inc.’s (“Burger King”) securities and tip others before the company’s September 2, 2010 announcement that it was being acquired by a New York private equity […]