International Law

Why You Are Not A Bank

From the FBI Press Release

"Peter C. Son, 38, of Danville, Calif., was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello said. Son was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release following his prison term and ordered to pay restitution in an amount to be determined.

According to court documents, Son and his business partner Jin Chung were the owners of SNC Asset Management, Inc. and SNC Investments, Inc. (Companies), which were incorporated in 2003.

The Companies shared office space in Pleasanton, Calif., and on Wall Street in New York City. Son served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chung served as the Chief Financial Officer.

Son was initially charged on July 27, 2009 with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to engage in monetary transactions with the proceeds of wire fraud.

On April 9, 2010, Son pleaded guilty to both counts. In pleading guilty, Son admitted he falsely advertised that the Companies had a distinguished record and were highly successful in foreign exchange trading, when in fact records reflect that very little foreign exchange trading was done by either company.

Son also admitted that potential investors were falsely promised annual returns on their investments of between 24 and 36 percent a year. From the beginning, investors were strongly encouraged to reinvest their profits to avoid having to return funds to the customers.

Returns were paid out to only those investors who demanded that the accounts be closed or those who demanded monthly returns be paid instead of reinvested.

Court records reflect that from 2003 through October 2008, approximately 500 customers invested approximately $85 million in the Companies, receiving in return approximately $23 million, leaving investors with losses amounting to approximately $62 million.

Most of the investors were Koreans living in California and Korea."

I think that banks are pretty stupid in their ability to choose economic winners, and the housing crisis in the US confirms my view.

There is only one class of stupid investors: you and me.

So, when someone comes to you to ask you to invest in their proven trading method, you know that they cannot prove this works satisfactorily to the a bank - whom they could borrow money from much cheaper.

You know the bank may not be brighter, but they are brighter than you.

Someone smarter than you has passed on the opportunity, and you know what which makes you better able to assess this risk?

Oh yeah, I forgot - you don't know anything.

Full post as published by Misleading Advertising Law on August 03, 2010 (boomark / email).