SEC Freezes Assets in $60 Million Ponzi Scheme Allegations

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Monday that it has “obtained emergency asset freezes” against Jonathan Adam of Angleton, Texas, and his brother

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused two brothers of running a $60 million Ponzi scheme that promised high returns on crypto investments but allegedly used the funds for personal luxuries.

The SEC announced Monday that it has obtained emergency asset freezes against Jonathan Adam of Angleton, Texas, and his brother, Tanner Adam, of Miami, Florida, along with their companies, GCZ Global LLC and Triten Financial Group LLC.

The regulator alleges that the brothers operated the scheme from January 2023 to June 2024, promising investors up to 13.5% monthly returns through a supposed crypto asset trading “bot.” Over 80 investors were impacted across the U.S., according to the SEC’s complaint.

“The Adam brothers promised their investors high returns on a crypto investment that did not exist, and then used investor funds to make Ponzi-like payments and to purchase designer goods, recreational vehicles, and million-dollar homes,” said Justin C. Jeffries, Associate Director of Enforcement in the SEC’s Atlanta Regional Office.

The SEC claims that the bot and the lending pool described to investors were non-existent, and that investor funds were instead misappropriated for personal use and to make payments to previous investors.

The complaint further reveals that Tanner Adam allegedly used investor money to finance a $30 million Miami condominium, while Jonathan Adam is accused of spending $480,000 on vehicles.

“As alleged in our complaint, the Adams misled investors about nearly every aspect of their purported crypto investment scheme,” Jeffries added. “We will continue to work to protect investors from being victimized by fraud in any asset class, including crypto.”

The SEC is seeking permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against the defendants, in addition to the emergency relief granted by the court, which the defendants did not oppose.

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