Reported by KIRK O’NEIL

Ponzi Scheme Lawsuit is Wells Fargo’s New Problem 

The latest controversy involving Wells Fargo is a lawsuit filed on May 4 by a court-appointed receivership against the bank, accusing it of helping to facilitate a multimillion Ponzi scheme dating back to 2017 and allegedly run by Las Vegas attorney Matthew Beasley, which targeted over 1,000 victims. Beasley faces federal charges of wire fraud and money laundering in connection with the alleged scheme, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

Prosecutors allege the scheme took more than $460 million from investors, but the lawsuit filed May 4 against Wells Fargo indicated that Beasley’s accounts may received about $500 million, the Review-Journal said.

Geoff Winkler, a receiver appointed by a federal judge to oversee the resolution of the Ponzi scheme’s financial aspects, has taken over the assets and bank accounts related to the scheme and has secured more than $80 million in assets so far, according to the lawsuit.

Beasley allegedly operated the Ponzi scheme through an Interest on Lawyers Trust Account, which is meant for attorneys to hold onto client funds. The lawsuit said that “from a bank’s perspective, the fraudulent scheme was obvious. A Ponzi scheme of this magnitude cannot run surreptitiously through an IOLTA and various related-party accounts.”

Read full report: https://www.thestreet.com/banking/wells-fargo-has-a-ponzi-scheme-scandal