News Releases

Jason Hyson LeBlanc , an investment adviser representative for Vere Global Wealth Management , has been ordered to repay $366,218 to individuals who bought promissory notes he sold to fund a Fort Bend County coffee shop. LeBlanc’s wife was a part-owner of the coffee shop, located in Fulshear. Texas...

The Texas State Securities Board this week finished its second regulatory crackdown on cryptocurrency offerings with two emergency actions against businesses claiming they have the expertise and financial strength to deliver high-yielding, no-risk returns. Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles said...

Texas Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles revoked the registration of George A. “Gus” Marwieh , who fraudulently sold more than $5 million in pension-linked investments and real estate development notes to clients without disclosing his excessive commissions, misuse of client funds, and conflicts...

Oil and gas investments are highly speculative, complex in their financial structure, and full of jargon that’s nearly impossible for a layperson to understand. For investors whose primary goal is saving for retirement, oil and gas offerings can carry significant risks. In the past four months, the...

The following are summaries of administrative actions the Texas State Securities Board took from July 1 through Sept. 30, 2019: TMTE Inc. AKA Metals.com AKA Chase Metals LLC: Rescission Offer Metals.com , a firm accused of convincing older Texans to liquidate securities held with registered...

Jason A. Gilbert , the CEO of a New York-based energy company who last year was ordered to stop an offering of unregistered investments in a multi-million-dollar oil and gas project, has made a full rescission offer to investors. Texas Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles last week entered an...

Texas and Kentucky securities regulators entered emergency orders on Sept. 16 to stop the offering of unregistered investments in an oil-drilling program in Southern Illinois that promises to produce oil wells with a minimum return of 100% within two years and monthly income for 20 years. According...

The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) on Sept. 10 released its annual enforcement report, which shows state securities regulators were responsible for more than $1 billion in monetary relief ordered as a result of state enforcement actions in 2018. In its 2019 Enforcement...

Jeremy “JB” Yowell , an unregistered investment promoter for Fort Worth-based Woodland Resources LLC , is cooperating with the Enforcement Division of the State Securities Board in its investigation of the company and its director of operations, longtime oilman Michael E. Patman . Yowell’s...

Texas Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles on Aug. 6 entered the fourth emergency action against a cryptocurrency investment promoter since the State Securities Board started a second investigative sweep of suspect cryptocurrency offerings in late June. According to the Emergency Cease and Desist...