Search Results for: Ascenergy Fraud

October 30, 2019 @ 3:45 pm By JD Alois  |  

Back in 2015 during the earliest days of securities crowdfunding in the US, the first case of alleged fraud surfaced by an issuer using Reg D 506c. Ascenergy, a purported Oil & Gas company, along with CEO Joey Gabaldon and several relief defendants were the… Read More

August 16, 2017 @ 3:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

Some times the wheels of justice move slowly. And sometimes the documentation associated with these wheels lag as well. File this one under recently discovered. The Securities and Exchange Commission released, this past June, the Agreed Final Judgement regarding the case of the Ascenergy crowdfunding… Read More

August 20, 2016 @ 7:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

The case of the Ascenergy crowdfunding fraud came to light just as Reg CF or Title III crowdfunding rules were announced to the public in October of 2015.   Ascenergy, an aspiring oil and gas operation, had raised about $5 million from approximately 90 investors,… Read More

November 2, 2015 @ 4:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Lost in all of the excitement of last weeks’ announcement from the SEC on Title III crowdfunding rules was a case of crowdfunding fraud.  According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the agency halted a “fraudulent oil and gas crowdfunding scheme”.  The SEC has frozen… Read More

May 20, 2016 @ 11:00 am By JD Alois  |  

    The SEC Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies met yesterday at the SEC HQ on Capitol Hill. The main topic of discussion was the definition of an Accredited Investor. SEC Chair Mary Jo White was joined by her two remaining Commissioners, Michael… Read More

April 1, 2016 @ 6:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

As Albert Einstein so eloquently commented on the human ability of being duped; “Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the former.” Yes, most of us have fallen prey to good intentions gone bad at one point… Read More

March 21, 2016 @ 11:20 am By Amy Wan  |  

  Recently, JD Alois wrote a warning to investors about fraudsters attempting to impersonate officials from the Securities and Exchange Commission. This week, we’re warning borrowers and sponsors about scam artists that claim to work for or with crowdfunding platforms. Fraud in the lending or real… Read More

January 7, 2016 @ 5:08 pm By JD Alois  |  

The SEC dedicates much of its time and resources hunting down crooks and white collar thugs. In fact, the agency spent almost a billion dollars in the last fiscal year fostering and enforcing compliance with Federal securities laws. And why is that? Because there will… Read More

December 2, 2015 @ 8:00 am By JD Alois  |  

During the buildup to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s announcement regarding the final rules on Title III retail crowdfunding, the Commission filed a fraud case in the US District Court of Nevada.  The SEC accused Ascenergy, a company ostensibly in the oil and gas industry,… Read More

March 7, 2016 @ 4:00 am By Scott Andersen  |  

The recent economic downturn is not the only challenge for entrepreneurs in the EB-5 and JOBS Act industries.  Rather, the challenges include close regulatory scrutiny by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Enforcement.  While both EB-5 and the JOBS Act were… Read More

January 11, 2016 @ 6:00 am By Kiran Lingam  |  

  2015 could go down as the most active year for regulatory reform in the private securities market since 1940.   After a long delay since passage of the JOBS Act in 2012, we saw an unprecedented flurry of regulatory activity in 2015. Without further… Read More

December 24, 2015 @ 12:00 pm By Erin Hobey  |  

  “In 5 years, we will no longer talk about “Crowdfunding,” it will just be “funding.” Crowdfunding will just be one of the ways that early stage companies and SMEs gain access to capital.  Just like online trading of public securities is considered the primary… Read More

December 21, 2015 @ 7:45 am By Erin Hobey  |  

  “We believe the potential of crowdfunding is not about a single company or single crowdfunding platform.  It is about the evolution from an institutional framework for allocating capital (otherwise known as banks, funds, and foundations) to a more individually driven framework enabled by existing and… Read More

March 4, 2018 @ 6:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

    The very first initial coin offering (ICO) took place in June of 2013 when Mastercoin raised around $5 million in Bitcoin. That was the same year that Title II of the JOBS Act launched allowing general solicitation (SEC lingo for advertising) under Regulation… Read More

December 29, 2016 @ 7:30 am By Samuel Guzik  |  

The beginning of a new year is typically accompanied by renewed hope and positive expectations. 2017 is no exception.  As a staunch advocate of promoting the interests of small business generally, and smart regulation of capital formation, in particular, 2017 stands out to me as… Read More

December 12, 2016 @ 8:12 am By JD Alois  |  

uFundingPortal (UFP LLC) went off-line last month after receiving regulatory approval to operate as a Reg CF funding portal earlier this year.  Crowdfund Insider reported the disappearance of the site in November as questionable companies were listed with bare bones information and outlandish valuations. Industry… Read More

June 3, 2016 @ 12:06 pm By Oscar Jofre  |  

Get your mind out of the gutter!   Now, when you first saw the title, you asked yourself what business has to do with anything relating to double-Ds – of any kind. We’re talking about Due Diligence.  Sexy, isn’t it? Due diligence is a topic… Read More

May 17, 2016 @ 9:24 am By Amy Wan  |  

  Monday, May 16, 2016 is the first day that ordinary people—not just the super rich—will be able to invest in the next Uber or Snapchat. That’s because Title III of the JOBS Act, otherwise known as Regulation Crowdfunding or Reg CF, legalizes retail investment… Read More

May 8, 2016 @ 7:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has stepped up its public campaign against investment fraud in recent months. Either via social media or paid commercials, the SEC is clearly concerned as finance inevitably moves online.  This should come as no surprise to anyone that follows the… Read More

December 22, 2015 @ 11:12 am By JD Alois  |  

      Doug Ellenoff is one of the most recognizable names in the entire investment crowdfunding space. A founding partner of Manhattan law firm Ellenoff, Grossman & Schole, early on he and his firm staked a claim in the nascent alternative finance sector.  Ellenoff… Read More