US Marshals have been spotted entering the Houston office of Stanford Financial group, according to a Reuters witness.
Update: Per Bloomberg, via FT Alphaville, the SEC has gone and made an allegation of ‘massive fraud.’ As they’ve stated previously, there’s a logical explanation for all this. Fucking good for nothing employees who (maybe) know what’s up. Also: investors withdrawals halted. NBD.
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 20901 / February 17, 2009
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Stanford International Bank, et al., Case No. 3-09CV0298-L (N.D.TX.)
SEC Obtains Temporary Restraining Order, Asset Freeze, and Other Relief Against Defendants
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced that on February 16, 2009, the Honorable Judge Reed O’Connor, a federal judge in the Northern District of Texas, in response to the Commission’s application for emergency preliminary relief, entered a temporary restraining order against Robert Allen Stanford and three of his companies, the Antiguan-based Stanford International Bank (SIB), Houston based broker-dealer and investment adviser, Stanford Group Company (SGC) and investment adviser, Stanford Capital Management. The court’s order also extends to SIB chief financial officer James Davis, and Laura Pendergest-Holt, chief investment officer of Stanford Financial Group. The temporary restraining order restrains the defendants from violating certain antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws, as well as provisions of the Investment Company and Investment Adviser Acts. Also, Judge O’Connor froze all assets of the defendants until further notice, ordered that assets outside the U.S. be returned to the court’s jurisdiction, appointed a receiver to marshal the defendants’ assets and granted other relief.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal court in Dallas, alleges that the defendants have committed an $8 billion fraud and violated or aided and abetted violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Sections 206(1) and 206(2) of the Advisers Act of 1940, and Section 7(d) of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The complaint alleges that acting through a network of SGC financial advisers, SIB has sold approximately $8 billion of so-called “certificates of deposit” to investors by promising improbable and unsubstantiated high interest rates, supposedly earned through its unique investment strategy, which has purportedly allowed the bank to achieve double-digit returns on its investments over the past 15 years. According to the Complaint, the defendants have misrepresented to CD purchasers that their deposits are safe, falsely claiming that the bank re-invests client funds primarily in “liquid” financial instruments (the “portfolio”); monitors the portfolio through a team of 20-plus analysts; and is subject to yearly audits by Antiguan regulators. Recently, as the market absorbed the news of Bernard Madoff’s massive Ponzi scheme, SIB attempted to calm its own investors by falsely claiming the bank has no “direct or indirect” exposure to the Madoff scheme.
The Commission continues to seek, among other things, a permanent injunction, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus pre-judgment interest, and civil money penalties.
The Commission acknowledges the assistance and cooperation of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in connection with this matter.
Even if not guilty perception is quickly going to become reality.
nice tag, veddy nice
great tag, bess.
Moving at the speed of light.
not sure what this means, and details are non-existent, but FT Alphaville says SEC charging Stanford officially…
http://ftalphaville.ft.com/blog/2009/02/17/52574/bn-robert-stanford-accused-of-massive-fraud-by-sec/
Bloomy: Stanford accused of ‘Massive Fraud’ by SEC.
is this one of markopolos’ findings?
-mrp
annddd CNBC comes in with “breaking news” citing nyt…i still love you MCC.
Bring out the gimp.
was ashton kutcher one of the guys seen entering the building? is sir allen being punk’d?
Stanford was the biggest doner of corporate jet time to congressman. Plenty of people in DC are going to be squirming over this one.
Rusty tailpipe to the kneecap?
@12- that didn’t happen in home alone. so no.
Bite off every one of his fingers one at a time!
Megan McCallister: You’re not at all worried that something might happen to Kevin?
Buzz McCallister: No, for three reasons: A, I’m not that lucky. Two, we use smoke detectors and D, we live on the most boring street in the whole United States of America, where nothing even remotely dangerous will ever happen. Period.
@15 – thank you
Hey #11, can you point us to a source for that? Thanks!
1) Sad to see another black eye for my hometown
b) never trust anyone that offices in a shopping mall
4) C’mon Bess–what’s this non-sensical tag all about?
Antiguan regulators did the audits?
hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Thats not true.
Here is bunch of raw sources on the stanford mess:
http://article.wn.com/view/2009/02/12/AP_Source_US_probing_Caribbean_bank_investment_company_of_Te/
“cnbc has learned.”
such cockbags
#17, #11 here, I remember it from a 60 Minutes segment a few years ago. It stood out to me because I had just returned from a vacation in Antigua. You couldn’t be in Antigua without hearing about Stanford or seeing his buildings. The week prior he had sponsored a junket for the Congressional Black Caucus. Flew them down there supposedly to promote development in the area. His megayacht moored off Jumby Bay was the setting.
is there anything in this market that isnt a scam? Why would any rational person invest their money in these bogus mkts?
Here is bunch of raw sources on the stanford mess:
http://article.wn.com/view/2009/02/12/AP_Source_US_probing_Caribbean_bank_investment_company_of_Te/
@18- “what is this non-sensical tag about?”
jump off a cliff.
Here is bunch of raw sources on the stanford mess:
http://article.wn.com/view/2009/02/12/AP_Source_US_probing_Caribbean_bank_investment_company_of_Te/
@26 agreed. as the markets are principled on the greater fool theory, what’s the point of this perp walk?
Ridiculous Bess…..
Unrelated: wtf is an ‘overclass’?
Are you sure it’s the marshals?
they show up to serve subpoenas or take someone to jail.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aSXNIOa3MEyo&refer=us
U.S. Congress, Led By Oxley, Flies in Style on Corporate Jets
32…..that is because “the people” don’t pay off politicians. Corporations do.
@32
Oxley’s committee had oversight over offshore banking?
Ruh roh.
In a recent SEC filing Stanford list Madoff as one of his competitors.
In a recent SEC filing Stanford listed Madoff as one of his competitors. Ooops.
@27 man that went right over your head didn’t it?
Chris Cox – another great job by the SEC!
You are still a loser…..
@37- um, no i got the tag. he didn’t. surely you understand that, right? guess not.
-27
I worked at a Stanford office for three years. I always suspected the Bank was a fraud, but I couldn’t prove anything. The management at Stanford was some of the worst I had ever known; highly political and byzantine, with many of the top management posts resembling revolving doors. While there are some good, decent people working in lower-level management positions in the company, so far as the execs are concerned, this couldn’t happen to a more deserving group of people. Good riddance.
@39 Please refer to the manner in which 18 “numbered” his points. Rent Home Alone and compare. Put a shotgun in your mouth. Pull trigger (I suggest using your toe).
AND SMASH HIS FACE WWITH AN IRON!
Oh, the political connections to Stanford are just precious.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=adgR4suaamIM&refer=us
@18…is there a “stress release clinic” located in the same strip mall?….where’s mayor bill white when you need him!!!!!…oh yeah too busy spending 1 1/2 years on asian massage parlor “investigations:…lol…
would be so pimp if he’s legit
oh the humanity…get sheila jackson lee out there…
how about quannel x???…
“Youre such a disease Kevin”
Too Wet; didn’t Bandit.
bunch of shovely marvs
bunch of shovely marvs
@43: great – investor dollars go to Congressional island-hopping! Damn, why have I been honest all these years when there are scams to make and junkets to take!
The SEC complaint states that Stanford had exposure to Madoff.
They defrauded investors only to lose some of the defrauded funds to a Ponzi scheme?
*slaps forehead*
Hey #11, can you point us to a source for that? Thanks!
52 – Money laundering is a dirty business. You’ve got to be ready to break some heads, or you should just get out now.
Will Charlie “I rent apartments in Harlem” Rangel and Barry O. have to give back the 2300/4600 Sir Al “the Pirate of the Caribbean” Stanford gave them?
I really hope (yet doubt) this guy is legit, just make the SEC look even worse than they already do. Although, that’d probably backfire and regulatory reform would get even more draconian, sigh, just can’t win…
@44, while 99% of Houston strip malls do indeed have “executive retreats”, Stanford Financial is in the Galleria, which is a classy joint. Though I guess Treasures and TMC are right across the street.
@27, I’m at sea level, so that’ll be tough. Maybe I’ll have a creepy old man hit me with a shovel.
-18
Laura Pendergest is kinda hot!!!!
http://www.youthvillages.org/lauraPendergest.aspx
SIB’s investment committee, responsible for the management of the bank’s multi-billion dollar portfolio of assets, is comprised of Stanford; Stanford’s father who resides in Mexia, Tex.; another Mexia resident with business experience in cattle ranching and car sales; Pendergest-Holt, who prior to joining SFG had no financial services or securities industry experience; and Davis, who was Stanford’s college roommate, the SEC said.
A bunch of RIA are going to be in trouble if the directed assets to this firm.
The SEC also alleged an additional scheme relating to $1.2 billion in sales by SGC advisers of a proprietary mutual fund wrap program, called Stanford Allocation Strategy (SAS), by using materially false historical performance data.
The SEC’s complaint said that the false data helped SGC grow the SAS program from less than $10 million in 2004 to more than $1 billion, generating fees for SGC (and ultimately Stanford) of approximately $25 million in 2007 and 2008.
The fraudulent SAS performance was used to recruit registered investment advisers with significant books of business, who were then heavily incentivized to reallocate their clients’ assets to SIB’s CD program, the SEC added.
Laura Pendergest is kinda hot!!!!
http://www.youthvillages.org/lauraPendergest.aspx
SIB’s investment committee, responsible for the management of the bank’s multi-billion dollar portfolio of assets, is comprised of Stanford; Stanford’s father who resides in Mexia, Tex.; another Mexia resident with business experience in cattle ranching and car sales; Pendergest-Holt, who prior to joining SFG had no financial services or securities industry experience; and Davis, who was Stanford’s college roommate, the SEC said.
A bunch of RIA are going to be in trouble if the directed assets to this firm.
The SEC also alleged an additional scheme relating to $1.2 billion in sales by SGC advisers of a proprietary mutual fund wrap program, called Stanford Allocation Strategy (SAS), by using materially false historical performance data.
The SEC’s complaint said that the false data helped SGC grow the SAS program from less than $10 million in 2004 to more than $1 billion, generating fees for SGC (and ultimately Stanford) of approximately $25 million in 2007 and 2008.
The fraudulent SAS performance was used to recruit registered investment advisers with significant books of business, who were then heavily incentivized to reallocate their clients’ assets to SIB’s CD program, the SEC added.
@7 You bet the SEC couldn’t find it on their own.
Finally….deserved scrutiny.
The banana republic knighted him, but his passport is now confiscated.
He dazzled them with one pretty bank down there
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/164/337454706_11eb34192a_m.jpg
http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/02/investment-manager-stanford-wa.html
Money manager Robert Allen Stanford now has two things in common with Bernard Madoff: both have allegedly defrauded their investors, and both have given significant funds to politicians.
Stanford Financial Group has spent a total of $4.8m on lobbying since 1999, primarily on issues related to money laundering, financial services and banking. Last year the firm’s lobbying spiked by more than 300%, totaling $2.2m, by far the most it has ever reported spending.
rC3sGu Thank you ever so for you article post.Much thanks again. Much obliged.
I may suggest the 1 I’ve coded.
https://github.com/sergiomartino/jQuery-LiveTweet