Information and Alerts
Alert Details
This business has 1 alert.
Government Actions
SEC vs Sky Group USA LLC and Efrain Betancourt. Case number 1:21-cv-23443 S.D. Fla.
UPDATE As of June 28, 2022
A Final Judgment was consented to and issued against Sky Group USA LLC which ordered and adjudged:
Sky Group is permanently restrained and enjoined from violating Section 5 of the Securities Act, 15 U.S.C. § 77e.
Sky Group is permanently restrained and enjoined from violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act, 15 U.S.C. §77q(a).
Sky Group is permanently restrained and enjoined from violating, directly or indirectly, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. §78j(b), and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder (17C.F.R. § 240.10b-5).
Sky Group is liable to the Commission for $30,267,152.00 in disgorgement, representing net profits gained as a result of the
conduct alleged in the Complaint. Sky Group shall be jointly and severally liable with Defendant Efrain Betancourt Jr. for $4,557,182.00 of the disgorgement total. Sky Group shall further be liable for prejudgment interest on disgorgement of $2,021,038.00, and a civil penalty of $7,000,000.00 pursuant to Section 20(d) of the Securities Act, 15 U.S.C. § 77t(d), and Section 21(d)(3) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. § 78u(d)(3).
------------------------------
As of September 27, 2021:
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges against Sky Group USA LLC, a payday loan company based in Miami, and its CEO, Efrain Betancourt, Jr., for fraudulently raising at least $66 million through the sale of promissory notes to more than 500 retail investors, including members of the South Florida Venezuelan-American community.
According to the SEC's complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Sky Group and Betancourt falsely told investors that Sky Group would use investors' money solely to make payday loans and cover the costs of such loans, when, in reality, Betancourt misappropriated at least $2.9 million for personal use - including for his lavish wedding at a chateau on the French Riviera, vacations to Disney resorts and the Caribbean, costs associated with the purchase of a luxury Miami condominium, and service on his personal Piper airplane - and transferred at least another $3.6 million to friends and family, including his ex-wife, Angelica Betancourt, and to EEB Capital Group LLC, an entity whose bank accounts Betancourt and his current wife control. Sky Group and Betancourt also allegedly used at least $19.2 million of investors' money to make Ponzi-like payments to other investors. Finally, the SEC's complaint alleges that Sky Group and Betancourt misled investors by promising annual returns as high as 120% and representing that Sky Group's business was profitable, even though Sky Group did not generate sufficient revenue to cover principal and interest payments due to investors.
The SEC's complaint charges Sky Group and Betancourt with violations of the registration and antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and additionally charges Betancourt with acting as an unregistered broker. The complaint also names as relief defendants Angelica Betancourt and EEB Capital Group LLC in connection with their illicit receipt of investor funds. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties from each of the defendants; an officer and director bar against Betancourt; and disgorgement with prejudgment interest from the relief defendants.
For further information, please contact:
Securities and Exchange Commission
Miami Regional Office
801 Brickell Ave., Suite 1950
Miami, FL 33131
305-982-6300
Web: https://www.sec.gov/
LINK: https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2021-196
Important Information
Pending Government Action
MIAMI - Efrain Betancourt, Jr., 36, a Colombian citizen, was arrested on Nov. 14, upon entering the United States and charged in South Florida federal court with leading a $66 million Ponzi scheme disguised as a payday loan company, Sky Group USA, LLC (Sky Group).
Betancourt, Jr. was charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and wire fraud on Sept. 12. The indictment was unsealed in federal court on Nov. 18.
According to allegations in the investment fraud indictment, Betancourt, Jr. offered promissory notes to Sky Group investors with yearly returns ranging from 24 to 120 percent. Betancourt, Jr. and others told promissory note investors their funds would be used to disburse payday loans to Sky Group clients. Interest from payday loans clients would then purportedly be used to repay promissory note investors. However, millions of dollars from promissory note investors were used to pay previous promissory note investors as part of the Ponzi scheme. Betancourt, Jr. also used over $7.5 million of investor funds for personal use, including a luxury chateau wedding in France, expensive jewelry, a Miami condominium, and family vacations. Over 600 investors invested in Sky Group, many of whom were Venezuelan.
If convicted of all charges in the indictment, Betancourt, Jr. faces a maximum total penalty of 140 years’ imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20399.
LINK: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/colombian-national-arrested-and-charged-operating-66-million-ponzi-scheme-disguised
BBB Business Profiles may not be reproduced for sales or promotional purposes.
BBB Business Profiles are provided solely to assist you in exercising your own best judgment. BBB asks third parties who publish complaints, reviews and/or responses on this website to affirm that the information provided is accurate. However, BBB does not verify the accuracy of information provided by third parties, and does not guarantee the accuracy of any information in Business Profiles.
When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.
BBB Business Profiles generally cover a three-year reporting period. BBB Business Profiles are subject to change at any time. If you choose to do business with this business, please let the business know that you contacted BBB for a BBB Business Profile.
As a matter of policy, BBB does not endorse any product, service or business. Businesses are under no obligation to seek BBB accreditation, and some businesses are not accredited because they have not sought BBB accreditation. BBB charges a fee for BBB Accreditation. This fee supports BBB's efforts to fulfill its mission of advancing marketplace trust.