S-1 Registration Requirements, Filing Form S-1, S-1 Offering, S-1 Lawyers
The process of “going public” with a Form S-1 registration statement is complex and at times precarious. Private companies going public should consider Form S-1 filing requirements when contemplating their going public transaction. Private companies seeking to raise capital often file a registration statement on SEC Form S-1 to meet certain requirements of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority when going public. Upon filing, a Form S-1 is reviewed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, who may render SEC Comments. Once a Form S-1 is declared effective by the SEC, the company becomes subject to SEC reporting requirements.
All companies qualify to use and must comply with Form S-1 registration statement requirements. Unlike a Form 10 registration statement which registers a class of securities, Form S-1 registers specific securities offerings or transactions and it does not become effective until all SEC comments have been resolved. Private companies going public should be aware of the expansive disclosure required in registration statements filed with the SEC prior to making the decision to go public. Companies conducting securities offerings should also be familiar with the Form S-1 quiet period and Form S-1 risk factor requirements.While going public offers many benefits it also comes with risks and quantities of regulations with which issuers must become familiar. It is important for issuers to have an experienced securities attorney to help navigate through the process and deal with the Securities & Exchange Commission (“SEC”), Financial Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) & Depository Trust Company (“DTC”). Upon completion of a going public transaction, the company is subject to the regulations that apply to public companies, including those of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (“Securities Act”) and Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”).
This blog post addresses common questions we receive about the going public process using Form S-1.
Q. What does it mean for a company to Go Public with Form S-1?
A. Going public often refers to the process of a company filing a registration statement with the SEC to register its securities and become an SEC reporting company. Other times going public may mean the filing a Form 211 with FINRA to obtain a ticker symbol for quotation on the OTC Markets OTC Pink Sheets without filing a registration statement with the SEC. Read More
Dormant Shell Companies For Reverse Mergers Suspended by the SEC While Delinquent Filers Run Wild
We’ve written several times about reverse mergers and Operation Shell Expel. Shell Expel is one of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s most successful enforcement initiatives to combat the use of shell companies for reverse mergers. Its object is to render useless and worthless dormant shell companies that might otherwise be hijacked, used in reverse mergers, and ultimately pumped and dumped. These companies are a real problem for the agency. If an issuer that’s an SEC registrant is abandoned by management, after a couple of years the SEC’s Enforcement Division can bring an administrative proceeding to revoke registration. Most targeted companies find they can’t really object, and when an initial order becomes effective, the public shell company becomes a private entity.
Going Public – Regulation A+ – IPO Alternative
Regulation A+ is designed to facilitate smaller companies’ access to capital by providing an alternative to direct public offerings/DPO’s and initial public offerings/IPO’s. Regulation A+’s new rules provide investors with more investment choices and issuers with more capital raising options during their going public transactions. Regulation A+ provides a workable alternative to an initial public offering/IPO by allowing companies to raise capital without an underwriter and without filing a full blow S-1 registration statement with the SEC.
Regulation A+ expands existing Regulation A. Existing Regulation A provides an existing exemption from registration for smaller issuers of securities. Regulation A+ offerings can be used in combination with direct public offerings and initial public offerings as part of a Going Public Transaction. The exemption simplifies the process of obtaining the seed stockholders required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority while allowing the issuer to raise initial capital. Read More
Form F-1 Foreign Issuer Registration Statements and Going Public
SEC Form F-1 is commonly used by foreign issuers in connection with their going public transaction. Typically, foreign companies seeking to raise capital attempt to obtain public company status. Foreign companies that go public in the U.S. can register shares pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) or register a class of securities pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”).
Like domestic issuers, foreign companies have access to several means of raising capital during the going public process. A direct public offering (“Direct Public Offering”) allows an issuer to raise capital by selling securities directly to investors without the use of an underwriter. The Direct Public Offering for a foreign company involves registering a securities offering with the SEC, typically on a Form F-1 registration statement. Read More
Will Form 12b-25 Extend 10-Q’s Due Date? l Securities Lawyer 101
Rule 12b-25 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) requires SEC reporting companies to provide notice on Form 12b-25 if it is unable to file its report on Form 10-Q within the prescribed time period. Form 12b-25 provides the issuer with an additional 5 day extension for the filing of its 10-Q. The form also provides disclosure to the public regarding the reasons why a periodic report on Form 10-Q cannot be timely filed.
A company’s Form 10-Q will be deemed to have been timely filed provided it complied with all the requirements and conditions of Rule 12b-25, including the 5 day extension granted by Rule 12b-25. Read More
SEC Charges Lloyd Schuman with Repeated Insider Trading
The SEC charged on May 9, 2019, Lloyd Schuman and Dane Janes for insider trading and for repeatedly traded and tipped on confidential information that they obtained through their respective employers.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, alleges that Lloyd Schuman, of Cordova, Tennessee, learned that his employer, Verso Corporation, had confidential plans to acquire privately-held NewPage Holdings Inc. According to the SEC’s Complaint, Lloyd Schuman purchased Verso shares before Verso publicly announced the acquisition. Lloyd Schuman also allegedly tipped a relative, who also purchased Verso shares before the public announcement. Immediately after the announcement, Lloyd Schuman sold all of his Verso shares realizing more than $107,000 in profits. His relative also sold his Verso shares, realizing more than $2,500 in profits. Read More
SEC Charges Danny Williams Former Executive of a Truckload Freight Company with Accounting Fraud
On May 9,2019, the SEC charged Danny Williams, the former President of Quality Companies, LLC, a former subsidiary of Indianapolis-based Celadon Group Inc., with an accounting fraud that allowed Celadon to avoid disclosing substantial losses and misrepresent its financial condition.
According to the SEC’s complaint, between mid-2016 and April 2017, Danny Williams, engaged in a scheme to sell used trucks at inflated prices to third parties, in return for buying trucks at comparably inflated prices. This scheme allegedly enabled Celadon to avoid recording losses on the truck sales. The complaint further alleges that, as a result of the scheme, Celadon overstated its pre-tax and net income and earnings per share in its annual report for the period ending June 30, 2016, and in its subsequent public filings for the first two fiscal quarters of 2017. According to the complaint, Danny Williams,aided and abetted Celadon’s violations, and lied to Celadon’s Board of Directors and auditor about the transactions with the third-party dealers. Read More
SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against Rocco Roveccio for Defrauding Customers
On May 3, 2019, a federal district court entered a final consent judgment against Rocco Roveccio, a broker who was charged with defrauding customers by making unsuitable and unauthorized trades and churning customers’ accounts, which enriched the broker at the customers’ expense.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in the Southern District of New York, alleges that from July 2012 to October 2014, Rocco Roveccio, a New Jersey resident, recommended to seven customers a pattern of high-cost, in-and-out trading without any reasonable basis to believe that his customers could make a profit. Rocco Roveccio’s recommendations resulted in losses for the customers and gains for Rocco Roveccio. Rocco Roveccio allegedly also lied to his customers about the potential for the accounts to profit. The complaint also alleges that Rocco Roveccio engaged in unauthorized trading and churning. Read More
What is a Penny Stock? Securities Lawyer 101
The term “penny stock” most often refers to a security issued by a very small company that trades for less than $5 per share, but not always. Private companies can be penny stocks. The SEC issued guidance as to the application of the penny stock rules to private companies. (See Fast Answers Penny Stock Rules https://www.sec.gov/fast-answers/answerspennyhtm.html):
Penny stocks are often quoted over-the-counter on the OTC Markets OTC Link LLC. However, Penny Stocks may also trade on securities exchanges, including foreign ones. In addition, the definition can include the securities of certain private companies with no active trading market. Read More
SEC Announces Fraud Charges in Ticket Resale Investment Scam
On April 29,2019, the SEC charged James Siniscalchi, a New York City man with continuing a previously charged scheme, stealing millions of dollars from investors who were allegedly falsely promised their funds would be used for the purchase and resale of tickets to Broadway shows and a sporting event.
According to the SEC’s complaint, James Siniscalchi, Chief Compliance Officer of a company that claimed to have special access to profitable and highly sought-after event tickets, knowingly misused investor money to benefit himself and his extended family. The SEC alleges that James Siniscalchi and his business partners rebranded businesses formerly run by his cousin, Joseph Meli, who ultimately settled to SEC fraud charges and pled guilty to securities fraud in a parallel criminal action, and that this rebranding was done with Joseph Meli’s knowledge and help. Read More
SEC Obtains Asset Freeze in Connection with Alleged Insider Trading
The SEC announced on April 29,2019, the entry of an emergency court order freezing assets related to alleged insider trading that yielded approximately $2.5 million in profits in connection with the April 12, 2019 announcement that oil-and-gas conglomerate Chevron Corporation intended to acquire Anadarko Petroleum Corporation.
The SEC’s complaint, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, identifies a series of suspicious transactions prior to the announcement that Chevron intends to acquire all of Anadarko’s outstanding shares for $65 per share in cash and stock, representing a 38 percent premium over Anadarko’s pre-announcement closing price. The traders, who are currently unknown, allegedly used foreign brokerage accounts in the United Kingdom and Cyprus to purchase out-of-the-money call options through U.S.-based brokerage firms and on U.S.-based exchanges in the days leading up to the announcement. Following the acquisition announcement, Anadarko’s shares rose significantly and the brokerage account customers profited by either selling many of the option contracts at a profit or exercising the options to acquire large positions of Anadarko stock at steep discounts. The court’s order freezes the proceeds related to the foreign accounts’ trading. Read More
SEC Charges Christopher Dougherty, an Investment Adviser with Running a Ponzi Scheme
On April 26, 2019, the SEC charged Christopher Dougherty and several entities he controlled, with operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded his investment advisory clients out of $7 million. The San Diego District Attorney’s Office separately announced criminal charges related to the same conduct.
The SEC alleges that Christopher Dougherty provided investment advice to school district employees, hospital employees, veterans, and neighbors, most of whom were unsophisticated investors and trusted Christopher Dougherty completely. Read More
Do I Have To Amend My Form D? Going Public Attorneys
When a company decides to raise money in a Regulation D offering as part of its going public transaction, it must file a Form D – Notice of Sales with the Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 504, 505 or 506 of Regulation D of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). A Form D must also be filed for an exempt offering made pursuant to the accredited investor exemption of Section 4(5) of the Securities Act.
The Form D notice must be filed using the SEC’s Electronic Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System known as EDGAR. Many companies are unaware that Form D must be amended under certain circumstances.
An issuer with a previously filed notice on Form D should file an amended Form D to: Read More
What Is DTC Eligibility? Going Public Attorneys
DTC’s eligibility creates liquidity for companies after a going public transaction. DTC’s Issue Eligibility program allows newly issued securities as well as secondary offerings that meet DTC’s eligibility criteria to become eligible for the depository and book-entry services of The Depository Trust Company (DTC). DTC eligibility means that a security is freely tradable and fungible and is otherwise qualified to be held at DTC and traded and serviced through DTC’s electronic book-entry system. DTC’s eligibility criteria are more fully described in DTC’s Operational Arrangements.
DTC’s Depository services over the lifecycle of the security may include deposits, withdrawals, and a wide range of corporate action events such as dividend and interest payments, tender and rights offers, and corporate reorganizations. Read More
SEC Charges Truckload Freight Company with Accounting Fraud
The SEC charged on April 25,2019, an Indianapolis-based Celadon Group Inc. with an accounting fraud that allowed the truckload freight company to avoid disclosing substantial losses and misrepresent its financial condition.
In a complaint filed in federal court in Indianapolis, the SEC charged that between mid-2016 and April 2017, Celadon avoided recognizing at least $20 million in impairment charges and losses – almost two-thirds of its 2016 pre-tax income – by selling and buying used trucks at inflated prices from third parties. According to the complaint, as a result of the alleged scheme, Celadon overstated its pre-tax and net income and earnings per share in its annual report for the period ending June 30, 2016, and in its subsequent public filings for the first two fiscal quarters of 2017. Read More
Former Broker Zachary Berkey Ordered to Pay SEC Disgorgement and Penalties
On April 18, 2019, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, ordered a former broker, Zachary Berkey, to pay $106,000 in disgorgement, plus prejudgment interest, and $71,000 in civil penalties.
The SEC charged Zachary Berkey on December 6, 2017, alleging that, while a broker at Four Points Capital Partners LLC, Zachary Berkey conducted in-and-out trading that was almost certain to lose money for customers while yielding commissions for himself. Read More
SEC Charges Eric Lyons For Misappropriation and Fraudulent Securities Offering
On April 23, 2019, the SEC obtained an emergency asset freeze and temporary restraining order to halt an ongoing fraudulent securities offering by Eric Lyons, a Massachusetts resident, in an attempt to conceal his misappropriation from certain hedge funds Eric Lyons advised through his Massachusetts-based investment advisory businesses.
According to the SEC’s complaint, from mid-2017 to the present, Eric Lyons and various investment adviser entities with the name Synchrony that Eric Lyons controlled engaged in a scheme to misappropriate assets from hedge funds Eric Lyons and these Synchrony adviser entities managed. The SEC alleges that Eric Lyons transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Synchrony hedge funds to Eric Lyons’ personal bank accounts to pay for personal expenses, including frequent vacation travel, entertainment, rent, automobile lease payments, and other personal expenses. Further, the SEC alleges that Eric Lyons replaced some of the misappropriated money by engaging in a securities offering fraud, in which he obtained approximately $300,000 from an investor based on false and misleading statements about other potential large investors and a fabricated $100 million business valuation. In total, the SEC’s complaint alleges that Eric Lyons and the Synchrony adviser entities raised approximately $700,000 from their misappropriation and securities offering fraud schemes. Read More
SEC Charges David Loflin in Greenway Design Pump-and-Dump
The SEC charged David Loflin on April 22,2019, for his role in a pump-and-dump scheme in the stock of Greenway Design Group, Inc., a Phoenix, Arizona company that was secretly controlled by David Loflin’s now-deceased business partner. According to the SEC’s complaint, in 2013, David Loflin helped his business partner gain control of Greenway, using a front company to hide his partner’s identity.
David Loflin then created back-dated convertible promissory notes to document debts owed by Greenway that could be repaid with the company’s stock. David Loflin purchased portions of the notes, converted them into stock and prepared all of the paperwork. David Loflin secured false attorney opinion letters in order to obtain stock certificates and deposit them for sale with his brokerage firm. The letters and paperwork contained false and misleading information, meant to give the impression that David Loflin was permitted to sell the shares into the open market Read More
Regulation A Form 1-A Offering Circular Disclosures – Going Public Lawyers
Regulation A Form 1-A Offering Statements require line item disclosure of information about the issuer and the offering. Form 1-A is subject to a full review by the SEC. Regulation A offerings can be used in combination with direct public offerings and initial public offerings as part of a Going Public Transaction. Regulation A+ simplifies the process of obtaining the seed stockholders required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority while allowing the issuer to raise initial capital. Issuers conducting Regulation A+ offerings must provide the disclosures required by Form 1-A. Regulation A + Form 1-A consists of the following three parts:
- Part I: an eXtensible Markup Language (XML) based fillable form, which captures key information about the Issuer and its offering using an easy to complete online form, similar to Form D, with drop-down menus, indicator boxes or buttons, and text boxes, and assists Issuers in determining their ability to rely on the exemption. The XML-based fillable form will provide a convenient means of assembling and transmitting information to EDGAR, without requiring the Issuer to purchase or maintain additional software or technology;
- Part II: a text file attachment containing the body of the disclosure document and financial statements, formatted in HyperText Markup Language (HTML) or American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) to be compatible with the EDGAR filing system; and
- Part III: text file attachments, containing the signatures, exhibits index, and the exhibits to the offering statement, formatted in HTML or ASCII to be compatible with the EDGAR filing system.
Rule 506(c) Accredited Crowdfunding Offering Requirements – Crowdfunding Attorneys
Rule 506 Offerings are the most common of the Regulation D exemptions from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Rule 506 contains two distinct offering exemptions. Rule 506(b) and Rule 506(c). Rule 506 (b) provides an exemption to an unlimited number of accredited investors and up to thirty-five non-accredited investors without the use of general solicitation and advertising while Rule 506(c) allows the issuer to sell to an unlimited number of accredited investors so long as it verifies that each investors is an accredited investor. Read More
SEC Charges Kimberly Sredich with Misappropriation Scheme
On April 18, 2019, the SEC charged Kimberly Sredich, a Michigan resident, with misappropriating funds from brokerage customers of a registered broker-dealer with which she was associated. The SEC’s complaint alleges that between 2014 and 2018, Kimberly Sredich sold securities in at least 15 customer accounts and misappropriated the proceeds of the sales.
According to the complaint, many of the customers were elderly. The complaint further alleges that Kimberly Sredich forged customers’ signatures and used blank letters of authorization previously signed by customers to transfer funds to a company she controlled. She then allegedly transferred most of the misappropriated funds to a personal bank account. Read More
Regulation A l The Colossal Exemption l Securities Lawyer 101
Overview of the Regulation A Exemption
The Regulation A offering exemption provides investors with more investment choices and issuers with more capital raising options during their going public transactions. Regulation A is mandated by Title IV of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act. The Regulation A exemption provides for two distinct offering exemptions. Tier 1 of Regulation A provides an exemption from SEC registration for offerings of up to $20 million. Tier 2 exempts offerings up to $50 million. One of the most notable differences between the two Regulation A+ tiers is that issuers that conduct a Tier 2 offering will become subject to ongoing Regulation A reporting obligations, though such obligations are significantly less burdensome than those that apply to SEC reporting issuers filing Form S-1 Registration Statements.
Regulation A can be used in combination with direct public offerings and initial public offerings as part of a Going Public Transaction. The exemption simplifies the process of obtaining the seed stockholders required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority while allowing the issuer to raise initial capital. Regulation A has had a notable impact on companies going public. One key benefit of Regulation A is that companies using Regulation A can comply with scaled down public company SEC reporting requirements. If the company wants to become a fully reporting company, Regulation A allows them to file a Form 8-A to register a class of securities. Unlike Form 10, Registration on Form 8-A if effective upon filing.
SEC Charges Yuh-Yue Chen, a California Engineer with Insider Trading
The SEC announced on April 18,2019, the filing of insider trading charges against Yuh-Yue Chen, a former engineer at Skyworks Solutions, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company with executive offices and a design center in Irvine, California that designs, manufactures and sells wireless analog semiconductors.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that Yuh-Yue Chen, while working as an engineer at Skyworks in Irvine, traded multiple times in advance of the company’s earnings announcements. The complaint further alleges that Yuh-Yue Chen improperly accessed the company’s accounting and finance area, reviewed non-public financial reports, and used that information to purchase Skyworks securities in advance of the company’s announcements of financial results for the second and third quarters in 2014. The SEC charges that after Skyworks announced positive quarterly financial results on April 22, 2014 and again on July 17, 2014, Yuh-Yue Chen sold Skyworks securities for a total profit of at least $739,959. The complaint further alleges that in September 2014, Chen fled the country after Skyworks’ security found him loitering in the office restricted area designated for the accounting and finance staff. He recently returned to the United States for a visit at the end of March, when he was interviewed and subsequently served with the SEC’s complaint prior to his planned departure. Read More
SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Joseph Meli and Parties involved in Ticket Resale Scams
On April 11, 2019, two federal court judges entered final judgments against Joseph Meli, a New York City man, and six of his companies, in connection with two SEC cases that charged Joseph Meli with operating multi-million dollar fraudulent schemes involving purported purchases and resales of tickets to popular concerts and Broadway shows. Joseph Meli and his companies settled with the SEC and collectively agreed to pay more than $58 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest.
In January 2017, Joseph Meli was charged by the SEC, arrested by the FBI, and charged criminally by the U.S. Attorney. In the SEC case, Joseph Meli’s wife and mother were named as relief defendants based on their alleged receipt of stolen investor funds. In September 2017, the SEC charged Joseph Meli in a second case also involving an alleged ticket resale scheme, along with New York-based sports radio personality Craig Carton and six of their companies.
What is Form 211? Rule 15c-211, Sponsoring Market Maker Requirements
Locating a sponsoring market maker to file the Form 211 under Rule 15c-211 has become a challenging step in the going public process. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) a proposed rule change that will impact Form 211 filings in going public transactions. The proposals seek to amend FINRA Rule 6432 to require sponsoring market makers submitting Form 211 filings to certify that “neither the member nor persons associated with the member have accepted or will accept any payment or other consideration prohibited by FINRA Rule 5250”
FINRA Rule 5250 prohibits members from receiving any payment or other consideration by issuers or issuers’ affiliates and promoters, directly or indirectly, for publishing a quotation, acting as a market maker, or submitting an application on Form 211. This is a common issue in going public transactions. Read More
SEC Charges Woodbridge Directors, Ivan Acevedo and Dane Roseman with Fraud
On April 11, 2019, the SEC charged two former directors of investments at Woodbridge Group of Companies LLC for their roles in its massive Ponzi scheme. The defendants, California-based Ivan Acevedo and Dane Roseman, were separately arrested and charged by criminal authorities, along with Woodbridge owner Robert H. Shapiro.
The SEC previously charged Woodbridge and Shapiro, and Woodbridge’s highest-earning unregistered brokers. In January, a federal court in Florida ordered Woodbridge, related companies, and Shapiro together to pay $1 billion for operating this Ponzi scheme. Read More
SEC Charges Arif Naqvi and Dubai-Based Advisory Firm
On April 11, 2019, the SEC charged Arif Naqvi and Abraaj Investment Management Limited, a Dubai-based investment advisory firm, with misappropriating funds from a private equity fund client.
The SEC alleges that Arif Naqvi and his firm raised money for the Abraaj Growth Markets Health Fund (“Health Fund”), collecting more than $100 million over three years from U.S.-based charitable organizations and other U.S. investors. According to the SEC’s complaint, Arif Naqvi misappropriated money from the Health Fund and commingled the assets with corporate funds of Abraaj Investment Management Limited and its parent company, and used it for purposes unrelated to the Health Fund. The SEC alleges that Arif Naqvi and his firm made misrepresentations to investors and issued false and misleading financial statements to hide that they were spending investor money in unrelated ways. Read More
SEC Charges Investment Adviser, Gonzalo Ortiz with Securities Fraud
The SEC filed a civil injunctive action on April 10,2019, charging a New Jersey resident, Gonzalo Ortiz with defrauding an investor by lying about his trading success, concealing trading losses, and misappropriating funds.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal court in Brooklyn, alleges that Gonzalo Ortiz, of Hackensack, New Jersey, falsely touted his success in investing in stocks and promised the investor a minimum 50% return in a year, and induced the investor to give him control of over $570,000 the investor’s retirement savings. The complaint alleges that contrary to these promises, Gonzalo Ortiz misappropriated almost half of the funds and invested the other funds in high-risk microcap companies that generated significant losses. Gonzalo Ortiz then concealed the misappropriation and losses by providing the investor with a phony account statement that falsely showed high returns. According to the complaint, Gonzalo Ortiz misappropriated approximately $224,500 of the investor’s money, and lost approximately $290,000 through his trading. Read More
SEC Charges Fifteen Unregistered Brokers for Illegal Offering of Intertech Solutions
On April 9,2019, the SEC charged fifteen individuals with acting as unregistered brokers or aiding-and-abetting such activity in connection with Intertech Solutions, Inc.’s fraudulent and unregistered securities offerings.
The SEC’s complaints allege that Alexander Bevil, Richard Bohnsack, Daniel Broyles, Charles Davis, Michael Duke, Joel Duncan, Martin Lewis, Mark Parman, William Roth, Paula Saccomanno, Kenneth Shelton, Billy Ray Statham, Jr., Glenn Story, Dennis Swerdlen, and Harold Wasserman were hired by Intertech Solutions to engage in or facilitate cold-call solicitations of hundreds of prospective investors throughout the United States and Canada from at least February 2014 through December 2016. The complaints allege that, as a result of the defendants’ conduct, Intertech Solutions raised over $7 million from retail investors. According to the complaints, Intertech Solutions paid the defendants exorbitant commissions ranging from 35% to 50% of the funds provided by each investor. The complaints allege that the defendants did not disclose their commission rates to investors and instead distributed private placement memoranda that indicated that only 10% of investor proceeds would be used as commissions. The SEC previously charged Intertech Solutions and its control persons with orchestrating the fraudulent and unregistered offerings. Read More
SEC Charges Former Seaworld Associate General Counsel, Paul Powers with Insider Trading
On April 10, 2019, the SEC charged Paul Powers, a former senior lawyer at SeaWorld Entertainment Inc with insider trading based on nonpublic information that the company’s revenue would be better than anticipated for the second quarter of 2018.
The SEC alleges that Paul Powers had early access to key revenue information as the company’s associate general counsel and assistant secretary, and he purchased 18,000 shares of SeaWorld stock the day after he received a confidential draft of the 2018 second quarter earnings release that detailed a strong financial performance by the company after a lengthy period of decline. According to the SEC’s complaint, Paul Powers immediately sold his SeaWorld shares for approximately $65,000 in illicit profits after the company announced its positive earnings and the company’s stock price increased by 17 percent. Read More
