The October Enforcement Roundup contains information about five enforcement actions taken by the BC Securities Commission (BCSC) and the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO). There are also 14 new additions to the Investment Caution List.
BCSC Enforcement
BCSC Notice of Availability of Funds
Daniel Rojo Fernandes Filho
The BCSC is urging BC residents who lost money in a US-based Ponzi scheme to file claims with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for possible compensation. The scheme, which ran in 2014-2015 by Filho and others through DFRF Enterprises, promised extraordinarily high, risk-free returns from gold mining operations that did not exist.
About 1,400 people were defrauded worldwide including 137 linked to BC. Eligible victims can submit claims online by December 19 via the SEC.
Read the news release for full details.
BCSC Settlement Agreements
Spencer Reid Coulter and Nigel Alexander Horsley
Two BC residents, Coulter and Horsley, along with their companies Bullseye Consulting Inc. and Grand Lodge Capital Inc., agreed to pay a combined $110,000 for operating without registration and distributing securities tied to a cannabis company, RoccaVerde Wellness.
Between 2018 and 2019, they referred 75 investors, raising over $1.3 million, but failed to meet legal requirements such as registration and prospectus filings. As part of the settlement, Coulter will pay $65,000 and Horsley $45,000, with both facing nine-month restrictions on trading and promotional activities.
Read the news release for full details.
BCSC Sanctions
Bane Hunter and Joel Richard Stewart Macdonald
Hunter and Macdonald have been permanently banned from BC’s investment market. Australian authorities have found that they committed misconduct involving an “early stage” technology company based in BC.
Hunter (CEO, chairman, and director) and Macdonald (director) were liable for GetSwift Limited’s failure to disclose material information in announcements to the Australian Securities Exchange. BCSC imposed sanctions under its authority to reciprocate orders by other securities regulators.
Read the news release for full details.
CIRO Enforcement
CIRO Settlement Agreements
Carlos Gonzales-Ticas
Ticas, a former dealer representative with Sun Life Financial Investment Services, failed to accurately record a client’s Know-Your-Client (KYC) information and recommended unsuitable investments.
Ticas agreed to:
- Pay a fine of $20,000
- A one-year prohibition from conducting securities-related business in any capacity
- Pay costs of $2,500
Read the news release for full details.
BCSC Early Intervention
Our Investment Caution List notifies British Columbians about unqualified investments and unregistered activity originating outside the province but accepts BC residents as clients.
Below are the October additions to the Investment Caution List:
CapricornX (also known as CapricornXPro)
Antera Capital
RevivoCapital
Giga-Markets
BTC Trading Pro
Plus Capital Advisor
GoldNX
Mindquestercollege.com
Bittmarket
Coincaptrading
XZOT
Enterprise2U
ST Global Markets Ltd. (trade name: Ocean One Securities)
FXNovaCapital
Report a Concern
If you have concerns about a person or company offering an investment opportunity, please contact the BCSC Contact Centre at 604-899-6854 or 1-800-373-6393 or by e-mail at [email protected]. You can also file a complaint using BCSC’s online complaint form.
If you have information relating to fraud or serious market misconduct, you can securely submit tips through our Whistleblower program. Qualified tips may be eligible for cash rewards up to $500,000.
InvestRight.org is the BC Securities Commission’s investor education website. Subscribe to receive email updates from BCSC InvestRight.