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> The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that New York entrepreneur William Z. (Billy) McFarland, two companies he founded, a former senior exec

> The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that New York entrepreneur William Z. (Billy) McFarland, two companies he founded, a former senior executive, and a former contractor agreed to settle charges arising out of an extensive, multi-year offering fraud that raised at least $27.4 million from over 100 investors. So the issue is already settled, and the 24.7M is just the fraud, not the penalty. > McFarland has admitted the SEC’s allegations against him, agreed to a permanent officer-and-director bar, and agreed to disgorgement of $27.4 million, to be deemed satisfied by the forfeiture order entered in McFarland’s sentencing in a related criminal case. Margolin, Simon, Fyre Media, and Magnises agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying the charges. Margolin has agreed to a 7-year director-and-officer bar and must pay a $35,000 penalty, and Simon has agreed to a 3-year director-and-officer bar and must pay over $15,000 in disgorgement and penalty. The settlements are subject to court approval. I don't know what the forfeiture case involved, but this looks like a slap on the wrist given the numbers involved. EDIT: > McFARLAND, 26, of New York, New York, pled guilty to two counts of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and consented to a forfeiture order in the amount of $26,040,099.48. from: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/william-mcfarland-pleads-guilty-manhattan-federal-court-defrauding-investors-and-ticket https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/william-mcfarland-plead... That forfeiture does NOT look like a slap on the wrist

beager 8y ago
I mean, that forfeiture looks like "return most of the money you stole from the bank" with no punitive damages other than an officer-and-director bar, so does appear to be a slap on the wrist, unless he also serves time for the wire fraud.
- ergothus 8y ago
  You are correct - I was focused on the "did he get to profit from this despite getting caught" because I was worried about the positive incentive to be a fraud. However, lack of a positive when caught is NOT the same as a negative, so yeah, still a slap on the wrist, relatively speaking.
  - freeone3000 8y ago
    This is just the SEC charges. They mention a concurrent criminal case - this is where the actual penalties are going to be.
- exogeny 8y ago
  That money is spent though. There's nothing to return. He's going to have his wages garnished, hard, until he dies. I don't think it's a slap on the wrist by any means. (And to be clear, I'm not being sympathetic when I say that. Fuck him.)
yborg 8y ago
>New York entrepreneur I'm thinking that this should have had ironic quotes around it. As in 'El Chapo Guzman, a "New York entrepreneur" on a grand scale...' or 'Elizabeth Holmes, a "New York entrepreneur" of the old school...'

beager 8y ago

I mean, that forfeiture looks like "return most of the money you stole from the bank" with no punitive damages other than an officer-and-director bar, so does appear to be a slap on the wrist, unless he also serves time for the wire fraud.

ergothus 8y ago
You are correct - I was focused on the "did he get to profit from this despite getting caught" because I was worried about the positive incentive to be a fraud. However, lack of a positive when caught is NOT the same as a negative, so yeah, still a slap on the wrist, relatively speaking.
- freeone3000 8y ago
  This is just the SEC charges. They mention a concurrent criminal case - this is where the actual penalties are going to be.
exogeny 8y ago
That money is spent though. There's nothing to return. He's going to have his wages garnished, hard, until he dies. I don't think it's a slap on the wrist by any means. (And to be clear, I'm not being sympathetic when I say that. Fuck him.)

yborg 8y ago

>New York entrepreneur I'm thinking that this should have had ironic quotes around it. As in 'El Chapo Guzman, a "New York entrepreneur" on a grand scale...' or 'Elizabeth Holmes, a "New York entrepreneur" of the old school...'