A British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) has found that Thomas Arthur Williams and his group of companies committed fraud, the BCSC announced on Tuesday.
Williams, a former registrant, was the directing mind, director and officer of Global Wealth Creation Opportunities Inc., Global Wealth Financial Inc., and Global Wealth Creation Strategies Inc., collectively the Global Group of Companies.
The BCSC panel ruled that Williams and the Global Group of Companies committed fraud by raising $11.7 million from 123 investors.
Williams, who was registered in the securities world between 1989 and 2003, and has been licensed as an insurance agent since 1991, and his group of companies, committed fraud when they raised funds from investors as part of an investment scheme. Williams did not participate in the hearing, or enter any evidence in the case, the BCSC decision notes.
“Instead of investing the funds as Williams represented, investor funds were used to make payments to earlier investors, pay commissions to the finders and Williams and to pay money to third parties. This was simply a Ponzi scheme,” the panel decision says.
The panel also found that Williams, certain companies, and several of the finders, breached the prospectus and registration requirements. However, the panel also dismissed similar allegations against several others, ruling that it didn’t have jurisdiction over several other finders who lived outside B.C. and raised funds from investors out of the province.
Sanctions in the case will be handed down after a further hearing, scheduled for February.
BCSC vice chairman Nigel Cave dissented from one aspect of the majority decision. He found that certain allegations (those involving distributions that occurred before July 2008) should be dismissed on the basis that they occurred outside of the six-year limitation period.