Today, the SEC charged GPB Capital Holdings and several of its owners and affiliates with securities fraud, calling GPB a Ponzi scheme that raised over $1.7 billion from investors. The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) also announced today that seven state securities agencies have filed regulatory actions against GPB and others for their involvement in the securities fraud scheme that has defrauded approximately 17,000 investors across the United States.
Criminal charges were also filed against GPB owners and affiliates David Gentile, Jeffry Schneider, and Jeffrey Lash in federal court in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
According to the filings, GPB Capital Holdings projected an aura of success and fixed 8% annualized distributions – but it was a complete illusion. In reality, GPB was riddled with irreconcilable conflicts of interest and used investor funds – rather than earnings from operations – to pay investors distributions. The regulators alleged that David Gentile, Jeffrey Schneider, and Ascendant Capital engaged in illegal self-dealing, and federal prosecutors have charged them with securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit the same.
Meyer Wilson has been following and reporting on GPB Capital Holdings since it came under regulatory inquiry in 2018 for potential securities laws violations. The investment fraud attorneys at Meyer Wilson currently represent numerous investors across the country who were victims of the GPB scheme.
