The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against a San Francisco man and his investment advisory firm accused of pretending to manage millions of dollars in assets, and then stealing money from the first client who invested with them based on their misrepresentations.
The SEC alleges that Nicholas M. (‘Nick’) Mitsakos and his company Matrix Capital Markets, which is a state-registered investment adviser in California, solicited investors in a purported hedge fund while falsely marketing themselves as experienced money managers with a highly successful track record. Mitsakos and Matrix claimed assets under management in the millions when in fact they did not manage any client assets at all, and they fabricated a hypothetical portfolio of investments earning 20-66% annual returns and passed it off to investors as real trading.
When Mitsakos and Matrix were given $2 million in client assets to manage in September 2015, they proceeded to steal approximately $800,000 from that client and used most of it to pay for unauthorized personal and business expenses.
“We allege that Mitsakos and his firm tried to lure prospective investors with a mirage of assets under management and phony performance results, and when they finally won some actual business from a client, they proceeded to steal a large portion of it,” said Andrew M. Calamari, Director of the SEC’s New York Regional Office. “Whenever pitched an investment opportunity with claims of lofty historical performance, it’s important for investors to take the time to verify the information and make sure they’re getting the truth before deciding to invest.”
In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York today announced criminal charges against Mitsakos.
The SEC’s complaint was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and charges Mitsakos and Matrix with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. Mitsakos also is charged with aiding and abetting Matrix Capital’s violations. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions and disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus penalties.