U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. LR-25940 / February 12, 2024
Securities and Exchange Commission v. John Feloni et al., No. 1:23-cv-12233 (D. Mass. filed Sept. 29, 2023)
SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against Massachusetts Resident in $1.6 Million Securities Fraud
On February 8, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained final judgments against John Feloni and his company Stock Squirrel, Inc. Among other things, the judgments order payment of over $2 million in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties to be paid variously by the two defendants.
The SEC charged Feloni and Stock Squirrel with violating the federal securities laws in a complaint filed on September 29, 2023, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The SEC’s complaint alleged that, between at least 2019 and April 2023, Feloni and Stock Squirrel deceived approximately 180 retail investors into giving them almost $2.5 million by claiming that they would use investors’ money for Stock Squirrel’s business, principally by developing a smartphone application offering financial services to the fast-growing youth sector. Instead, according to the complaint, Feloni misappropriated approximately $1.6 million of investor funds—66% of the total amount raised from investors—for his own use and made Ponzi-like payments to prior investors.
Without admitting or denying the allegations, Feloni and Stock Squirrel consented to the entry of final judgments permanently enjoining them from violating Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and imposing, on a joint-and-several basis, disgorgement of $1,719,871 and prejudgment interest of $158,839.51. Feloni further consented to the entry of a final judgment: (1) ordering him to pay a $223,229 civil penalty; (2) prohibiting him from acting as an officer or director of any public company; (3) imposing a penny stock bar; and (4) enjoining him from participating, directly or indirectly, including but not limited to through any entity he owns or controls, in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security, or engaging in activities for purposes of inducing or attempting to induce the purchase or sale of any security; provided, however, that such injunction shall not prevent Feloni from purchasing or selling securities for his own personal account.
The SEC’s case was handled by David Fox, David London, Kerry Vasta, and Amy Gwiazda of the Boston Regional Office.