Platinum Funds Founder, Executives Charged In Alleged $1 Billion Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York said they are charging the founder of Platinum Partners, other executives and two of its flagship hedge fund advisory firms with conducting a fraudulent scheme to inflate asset values and illicitly move investor money to cover losses and liquidity problems. The SEC said it found suspicious activity during an examination of the firms as it alleged using misrepresentations to attract new investors during what internal documents described as "Hail Mary time." Founder and Chief Investment Officer Mark Nordlicht and the Platinum funds overstated the value of an oil company that was among their largest assets, the SEC alleged. The U.S. Attorney called it a $1 billion investment fraud.