News Releases

Last month, Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles warned that scams involving cryptocurrencies and digital assets present a top threat to retail investors in 2022 . Today, Commissioner Iles brought an action to stop this type of scam—a fraudulent cryptocurrency mining investment scheme targeting...

The Texas State Securities Board announced that a digital-asset financial services company, BlockFi Lending LLC (BlockFi), agreed to settlement terms regarding past unregistered offers and sales of securities to Texas residents. The securities were in the form of interest-bearing digital asset...

The Texas State Securities Board [TSSB] today released an annual list of top investor threats and urged caution before purchasing popular and volatile unregulated investments — especially those involving cryptocurrency and digital assets. TSSB also announced guidance for investors, including steps...

November 10, 2021. Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles entered an emergency cease and desist order against Treasure Growth LLC aka Treasure Growth Investments, a cryptocurrency cloud mining firm that claims to be organized in Oregon and located in Florida. The order also names Juliet Gilbert, its...

On November 3, 2021, Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles entered an emergency cease and desist order against Paganelli Enterprises, LLC, Christopher Dino Paganelli and AP Hedge. According to the order, the parties are located in Las Vegas but have been fraudulently soliciting Texas residents to...

Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles entered an emergency cease and desist order to stop an illegal international whiskey investment scheme. The order names Whiskey & Wealth Club Limited, a firm based in England and Scotland, as well as its principals and sales agents. According to the order...

On October 29, 2021, Derrick R. Trussell (CRD No. 5197550) entered a plea of no contest to securities fraud, securing execution of a document by deception and misapplication of fiduciary property in Cause No. 2019-CR-5767B, in the 175th Judicial District Court of Bexar County, Texas. Trussell was...

The Texas State Securities Board is warning investors in Rare Earth Exploration LLC about a fake financial settlement scam involving the Gordon Black & Associates Law Firm and International Corporate Entity Inc. Scammers claiming to be employees of Gordon Black & Associates are contacting investors...

On October 15, 2021, a grand jury sitting in Lee County, Texas, indicted Larry Steve Bassett for first-degree securities fraud, theft and money laundering. The charges relate to his alleged unlawful sale of investments in a trading program to 15 victims for approximately $1.5M. Bassett is accused of...

Mejdi Mahmoud Abousaoui was sentenced to serve 25 years in state prison after pleading guilty to first-degree securities fraud. Abousaoui paid $210,454.70 in up-front restitution and was ordered to pay the remaining balance of $2,803,271.56 of outstanding restitution. Abousaoui was prosecuted in the...