Securities Department enters final halt order, provides details on metals fraudster

The Arkansas Securities Department entered a final cease-and-desist order against Metals.com, which operates under various aliases. The order found the respondents provided unregistered investment advice and committed investment adviser fraud in selling precious metals to Arkansans.

The aliases of Metals.com include TMTE Inc.; Chase Metals, Inc.; and Chase Metals, LLC.

The department is urging Arkansas investors victimized in the alleged $185 million precious metals investment scheme targeting over 1,600 investors to immediately file a claim with the court-appointed receiver.

State securities regulators and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed a joint civil enforcement action against Metals.com, Tower Equity, Chase Metals, Barrick Capital, and other associated parties last September.

The complaint accused the defendants of deceiving customers into purchasing precious metals bullion at grossly inflated prices, while falsely claiming they were rare and carried a premium far above the base melt value. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered an injunction and a restraining order freezing the assets of the defendants. It also appointed Kelly Crawford as receiver, an official responsible for taking control of the assets of the defendants and distributing funds back to defrauded investors.

The receiver will begin administering the claims process and returning money to defrauded investors. As part of the process, the defrauded investors must complete and return their investor confirmation forms to the receiver to participate in the claims process and request a return of money. The deadline to return the Investor Confirmation Form is April 30, 2021.

Defrauded investors should direct questions about the claims process to the receiver, who can be reached at the following contacts:

Email: [email protected]
Telephone: (214) 706-4213
Website: https://www.metalsandbarrickcapitalreceivership.com/

“The Arkansas Securities Department is committed to holding bad actors accountable and pursuing relief for Arkansans who have been defrauded by illegal scams,” said Arkansas Securities Commissioner Eric Munson. “We encourage all investors defrauded by this scam to promptly contact the receiver to request a return of funds. My office stands ready to assist defrauded investors as they navigate the claims process and request a return of money.”