U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 25995 / May 7, 2024
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Power Up Lending Ltd., et al., No. 1:24-cv-03498 (S.D.N.Y. filed May 7, 2024)
SEC Sues Curt Kramer and Three of His Businesses for Acting as Unregistered Securities Dealers
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today charges against Curt Kramer of Jericho, New York, and his wholly owned businesses Power Up Lending Ltd., Geneva Roth Remark Holdings, Inc., and 1800 Diagonal Lending, LLC (formerly known as Sixth Street Lending LLC), for operating as unregistered securities dealers.
The SEC's complaint, filed in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, alleges that since at least January 2018 through at least March 2023, Kramer and his companies engaged in the business of purchasing convertible securities from penny stock issuers, converting those securities into common stock at a large discount from the prevailing market price, and quickly selling the newly issued shares into the market for a profit. The SEC's complaint alleges that the Defendants purchased nearly 2,000 convertible securities from about 325 microcap stock issuers, converted the securities into more than 100 billion newly-issued shares of common stock, rapidly sold the newly issued shares into the market, and generated millions of dollars in revenues and profits. As alleged, Kramer and his companies were not registered as dealers with the SEC or associated with a registered broker-dealer, as their activities required them to do.
The SEC's complaint charges Kramer, Power Up, Geneva Roth, and 1800 Diagonal with violating the dealer registration provision of Section 15(a)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"), and also alleges Kramer is liable as a control person of his companies pursuant to Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC seeks a permanent injunction, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest, civil penalties, a penny stock bar, and other equitable relief.
The SEC's investigation was conducted by Stephen LeBlanc and supervised by Lisa Deitch and Stacy Bogert. The litigation will be led by Suzanne Romajas, Daniel Lloyd, and Stephen LeBlanc, and supervised by Christopher Bruckmann.