National investment fraud lawyers KlaymanToskes is investigating Scott Patrick Trease (CRD# 1298222) after the SEC sanctioned the Matthews, North-Carolina-based investment advisor and his firm, Sapere Wealth Management. Trease and Sapere allegedly promoted two alternative investment schemes to advisory clients, one of which, the Sapere NuLife Global Redemption Fund, lost a client $2.3 million.
Investors that suffered losses with Scott Patrick Trease at Sapere Wealth Management may be entitled to a financial recovery. Contact Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq. immediately at (888) 997-9956 or lklayman@klaymantoskes.com to discuss your recovery options. Consultations are free and we do not collect attorney’s fees unless we are able to obtain a financial recovery for you.
The SEC filed its complaint against Scott Trease and Sapere Wealth Management on March 22nd, 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. According to the investigation’s findings, Trease invested three advisory clients’ funds in alternative investments without performing required due diligence prior to making the recommendations.
It is alleged that Trease also worked with a financier and an intermediary to execute the deals but failed to investigate the prior misconduct of these individuals. The SEC reported that one of these individuals had previously spent nearly 100 months in prison for a drug charge, while the other was sentenced to 33 months in prison for wire fraud.
In one example documented by the SEC, the intermediary individual requested that Trease pay him $2,300,000 in order to pay for an insurance policy premium required to fulfill a note offering in the amount of $450,000,000. This individual allegedly promised to repay the loan, plus an additional $1 million, and to provide a distribution to Trease’s alternative offering fund, the Sapere Nulife GLobal Redemption Fund. The intermediary alleged the investment was collateralized against an Australian gold safekeeping receipt.
In order to fulfill this request from his intermediary, Trease allegedly solicited an advisory client to invest the $2,300,000. The funds were never recovered by the client and the alleged Australian gold safekeeping receipt was determined to have been fraudulent, according to the SEC’s complaint.
In a second alternative investment offering, Trease allegedly solicited $5,000,000 from a trust and a married couple. The investment was also purportedly collateralized against the same fraudulent safekeeping receipt, according to the SEC’s complaint. The investors believed their investment would be returned within 60 days, with profit. Fortunately, despite having been victims in Trease’s scheme, the SEC reported these investors were able to recover their funds.
The SEC’s complaint alleges that several representatives of Sapere Wealth Management ignored numerous red flags prior to undertaking the failed offerings. When reviewing the offering plans, Sapere Wealth Management’s Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”) allegedly stated that he could not consider it a “legitimate deal” and declared “my gut tells me that something is not right.”
In connection with the SEC’s findings, Sapere Wealth Management and Scott Patrcik Trease consented to a five-year ban from recommending or executing any securities transaction that does not involve a publicly traded security. Trease also agreed to pay the SEC a $100,000 fine.
Former and current customers of Scott Patrick Trease at Sapere Wealth Management in Matthews, NC who have experienced significant investment losses are encouraged to contact securities attorney Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq. at 1-888-997-9956 or online at www.klaymantoskes.com for a free consultation to discuss recovery options.
KlaymanToskes offers legal services on a contingency fee basis, meaning we do not collect attorney’s fees unless we are able to obtain a financial recovery for you.
KlaymanToskes is a leading national securities law firm which practices exclusively in the field of securities arbitration on behalf of retail and institutional investors throughout the world in large and complex securities matters. The firm has recovered over $250 million in FINRA arbitrations and over $350 million in other securities litigation matters. KlaymanToskes has office locations in California, Florida, New York, and Puerto Rico.
KlaymanToskes, P.A.
Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq.
888-997-9956
lklayman@klaymantoskes.com
www.klaymantoskes.com