Latest news with #Ponzi-like
Cision Canada
2 days ago
- Business
- Cision Canada
ASC permanently bans Raymond Cawaling and RTAX Financial Corp. for contravening Alberta securities laws
CALGARY, AB, July 14, 2025 /CNW/ - The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) has sanctioned Raymond Cawaling and RTAX Financial Corp. (the Respondents) for illegally distributing securities and perpetrating a fraud on investors. Between October 2016 and November 2019, the Respondents misappropriated at least CAD$462,421 from investors who were told that the funds would be used to invest in or provide loans to third parties, including an overseas mining company. An ASC panel previously found that a significant portion of the money was redirected for personal use, to repay unrelated debts, and to pay principal and interest to other investors in a Ponzi-like scheme. The panel has ordered the Respondents to jointly pay $462,421 as a result of their non-compliance with Alberta securities laws, plus an administrative penalty of $175,000 and investigation and hearing costs of $81,755. In addition: Cawaling is ordered to resign from all positions he may have as a director or officer of any issuer and is subject to a broad array of permanent market-access bans. RTAX is ordered to permanently cease trading in, purchasing, or advising in securities or derivatives. All trading in or purchasing of RTAX securities must cease. In its decision, the panel noted that the Respondents' misconduct caused harm to both investors and Alberta's capital market, and stated that in addition to sanctions related to the fraud, "consequences must also fall on those who illegally distribute securities and deprive investors of the protections our regulatory system is intended to provide." A copy of the decision is available on the ASC website at The ASC is the regulatory agency responsible for administering the province's securities laws. It is entrusted with fostering a fair and efficient capital market in Alberta and with protecting investors. As a member of the Canadian Securities Administrators, the ASC works to improve, coordinate and harmonize the regulation of Canada's capital markets.
5 days ago
- Business
British man extradited to US to face federal charges in alleged $99 million wine scam
NEW YORK -- A British man has been brought to the U.S. to face charges in connection with an alleged $99 million Ponzi-like fraud involving expensive wines. James Wellesley, 58, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Friday in Brooklyn federal court following his extradition from the United Kingdom, where he was arrested in 2022. He was ordered detained by a judge pending trial on wire fraud and money laundering charges. A lawyer for Wellesley didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment. His co-defendant, Stephen Burton, was extradited from Morocco in 2023 after using a bogus Zimbabwean passport to enter that country. Burton, a 60-year-old British national, has also been detained and pleaded not guilty to similar charges in the same Brooklyn court. Prosecutors say the two men ran a company called Bordeaux Cellars that brokered loans between investors and wealthy wine collectors that were secured by their wine collections. From 2017 to 2019, they solicited $99 million in investments from residents of New York and other areas, promising their clients that they would profit from interest on the loans. But the wealthy wine collectors did not exist, no loans were made, and Bordeaux Cellars did not have custody of the wine securing the loans, prosecutors say. Instead, Burton and Wellesley used loan money provided by investors for themselves and to make fraudulent interest payments to other investors, prosecutors alleged.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
British man extradited to US to face federal charges in alleged $99 million wine scam
NEW YORK (AP) — A British man has been brought to the U.S. to face charges in connection with an alleged $99 million Ponzi-like fraud involving expensive wines. James Wellesley, 58, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Friday in Brooklyn federal court following his extradition from the United Kingdom, where he was arrested in 2022. He was ordered detained by a judge pending trial on wire fraud and money laundering charges. A lawyer for Wellesley didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment. His co-defendant, Stephen Burton, was extradited from Morocco in 2023 after using a bogus Zimbabwean passport to enter that country. Burton, a 60-year-old British national, has also been detained and pleaded not guilty to similar charges in the same Brooklyn court. Prosecutors say the two men ran a company called Bordeaux Cellars that brokered loans between investors and wealthy wine collectors that were secured by their wine collections. From 2017 to 2019, they solicited $99 million in investments from residents of New York and other areas, promising their clients that they would profit from interest on the loans. But the wealthy wine collectors did not exist, no loans were made, and Bordeaux Cellars did not have custody of the wine securing the loans, prosecutors say. Instead, Burton and Wellesley used loan money provided by investors for themselves and to make fraudulent interest payments to other investors, prosecutors alleged. If convicted, the two face up to 20 years in prison each.
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Business
- Indian Express
Rs 49,000 crore Ponzi scheme case: PACL director Gurnam Singh arrested from Punjab's Rupnagar
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Uttar Pradesh Police Thursday arrested Gurnam Singh, the director of Pearls Agro-Tech Corporation Limited (PACL), from Rupnagar district of Punjab in connection with the nearly Rs 49,000 crore alleged Ponzi scam. Gurnam Singh, 69, is accused of orchestrating the massive Ponzi-like scam, duping over five crore investors across 10 states, including Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi, Rajasthan, Bihar, and Kerala. PACL allegedly lured investors with the promise of land plots, and high returns under fake real estate schemes, without being registered as a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC), thereby violating the RBI Act. He is one of the 10 accused — four are in jail, and a manhunt is underway for the rest. According to Neera Rawat, Director General, EOW, the company functioned as a classic pyramid scheme. Early investors were paid using funds from new investors, and agents earned hefty commissions and were encouraged to bring in family and friends. Massive seminars were conducted to attract more people. Originally registered as Guruvant Agro-Tech Ltd in Jaipur in 1996, the company was renamed PACL Ltd in 2011, with its corporate office located at Barakhamba Road, New Delhi. It established hundreds of branches in UP, particularly in Mahoba, Jalaun, Sultanpur, and Farrukhabad, where it aggressively marketed bogus land-linked investment schemes. Investors were issued receipts, but neither the land nor the promised returns were delivered. Following several complaints and a SEBI probe, a case was registered (EOW Case No. 1/18) in Kanpur. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) also filed a supplementary prosecution complaint against PACL and its associates. The ED stated that over Rs 19,000 crore collected in UP alone was routed through shell companies, including MDB Housing, controlled by Harsatinder Pal Singh Hayer, the son-in-law of PACL founder and the alleged mastermind, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo. Hayer is currently in judicial custody. Bhangoo, a former milkman from Barnala, Punjab, allegedly used investor funds to build a real estate empire. The investigation continues to trace laundered assets and bring other absconders to justice.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Rs 49K cr Ponzi scheme fraud: Pearls Agro-Tech director arrested
Lucknow: In one of India's largest financial frauds, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday arrested Gurnam Singh (69), the director of Pearls Agro-Tech Corporation Limited (PACL), from Ropar district in Punjab, reports Pathikrit Chakraborty. Singh is accused of orchestrating a massive Ponzi-like scam, illegally collecting investments worth around Rs 49,000 crore from five crore unsuspecting investors across 10 states: Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Punjab, Rajasthan, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh. Both the CBI and ED lodged cases against PACL. Following complaints and a SEBI probe, a case was registered at EOW police station, Kanpur (Case No. 1/18), invoking various IPC's sections. Gurnam Singh was one of the ten named accused. Four others were already jailed in related CBI cases. The hunt continues for the remaining absconders. EOW said that the accused Gurnam was one of the main directors of the company appointed by the founder, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, who died later. The company papers and documents reveal this fact. According to officials in EOW, the gang duped 50 lakh innocent people in different districts of Uttar Pradesh. Originally registered as Guruvant Agro-Tech Ltd with the Registrar of Companies in Jaipur on February 13, 1996, the company changed its name to PACL Ltd on October 25, 2011, with its corporate office at Barakhamba Road, New Delhi. Without obtaining mandatory registration as a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) under Section 45 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the company allegedly conducted unauthorised banking activities. It opened multiple branches in Uttar Pradesh—particularly in Mahoba, Sultanpur, Farrukhabad, and Jalaun—where it aggressively promoted investment schemes. Investors were lured through promises of land plots and high returns in exchange for recurring and fixed deposits (RDs/FDs). Bond receipts were issued, but neither the plots nor returns were delivered, said EOW officials. Through deceptive real estate schemes promising land plots in return for recurring and fixed deposits (RDs and FDs), PACL collected over Rs 19,000 crore from the public in Uttar Pradesh alone, issuing bond receipts but delivering neither land nor returns, the EOW said. DG, EOW, Neera Rawat, said that the accused became a director in 1998 and the company is a classic Ponzi scheme. The PACL scam initially paid returns to earlier investors using the funds of new investors. "The promise of high returns attracted more people, and the company began operating as a pyramid scheme, encouraging everyone to recruit two others. Agents received significant commissions, leading them to bring in friends and family. The company organised numerous seminars to promote itself and lure more investors," she said. Recently, the Directorate of Enforcement's (ED) Delhi zonal office filed a supplementary prosecution complaint (SPC) against PACL company and others before the special PMLA court, New Delhi, in connection with the massive Rs 48,000 crore. ED's investigation revealed that PACL diverted investor funds to various shell and associate companies, including M/s. MDB Housing Complex Pvt. Ltd., which was controlled by Harsatinder Pal Singh Hayer, the son-in-law of the late Bhangoo. The agency alleged that this diversion was an attempt to launder illicit proceeds by disguising them as legitimate business income. Hayer, who was arrested by the ED on March 21, is currently in judicial custody. Investigators identified that between 2011 and 2014, he purchased multiple immovable properties in Mumbai, Punjab, and Haryana using proceeds from the scam, the release said. Despite the known tainted origin of these funds, Hayer continued to possess, use, and present these properties as legally acquired assets, it added. The Scam The PACL (Pearl Agrotech Corporation Limited) scam was executed by Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, a former milkman based in Punjab. This pyramid scheme promised investors substantial returns by allegedly using their money to purchase land. The company claimed that the land would be developed for agricultural and commercial purposes and sold at a significant profit, from which investors would receive high returns. However, instead of land ownership documents, investors received nothing more than receipts, which held no real value. Its Founder Nirmal Singh Bhangoo was a resident of Barnala, Punjab. In his youth, he sold milk with his brother while pursuing a postgraduate degree in political science. During the 1970s, he moved to Kolkata for work and joined Pearls, a well-known investment firm. Later, he worked for Golden Forest India Limited, a company that also defrauded investors. After it shut down, Bhangoo was left unemployed, setting the stage for his future fraudulent ventures. PICTURE FOR THIS STORY: Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday arrested Gurnam Singh, director of Pearls Agro-tech Corporation Ltd (PACL), from Ropar, in Punjab. Gurnam is accused of orchestrating one of India's biggest financial frauds, worth nearly Rs 49,000 crore, by illegally collecting public deposits under the guise of land schemes without NBFC (non-banking financial company) registration. The company operated across 10 states, including UP, and duped five crore investors since 1998 through false promises of land plots and returns
