its always the guy you suspect the most

SEC Allegations of Fraudulent Offerings [00:00]

• Accusations of raising $112 million through fraudulent offerings with a co-founder.
• The SEC has taken a case against the individual.
• Allegations include making misrepresentations and omitting material facts regarding the profitability of portfolio companies.
• Companies were described as "on fire" with strong cash flow, while allegedly burning through cash.
• Approximately $5.9 million of investor returns were allegedly Ponzi-like payments funded by other investors.
• Approximately $16.1 million in investor funds were reportedly diverted for personal use.

The SEC has now taken a case against Tai Lopez, but he's still ranting about books. Remember, they can't control you if you read the right books and inform yourself.

Now, let me say, Ty, depending on the outcome here of these allegations, they may be able to control you.

At least if you believe the SEC's allegations, which claims that Tai and Alex Mayer made misrepresentations and omitted to state material facts, specifically about the profitability.

They were saying their portfolio companies were on fire and cash flow is strong. Uh which depending on what you mean by on fire, maybe that was actually true because these companies were burning through cash.

Meanwhile, they were raising money from investors mostly through a combination of debt and sometimes equity.

And when things were falling apart, at least $5.9 million of those returns that were supposedly distributed to investors, like the payback for the loans were in reality what they call Ponziike payments funded by other investors.

In addition, Ty Lopez and Alexander Mayor apparently misappropriated approximately $16.1 million in investor funds which were diverted for their personal use.

According to the SEC, according to their allegations.

The core of the allegations centers on deceptive financial practices in raising substantial funds and managing investor money, including purported diversion of funds for personal gain and the use of Ponzi-like schemes for distributions. This paints a picture of serious financial misconduct that has drawn the attention of regulatory bodies.

The Rise and Fall of a Business Model [00:05]

• Known for running ads and selling programs like "47 rules for success" and various sales or life guides.
• Previously sold knowledge where overpromising and underdelivering often resulted in people not getting too mad, with critics calling it "grifter" behavior.
• Transitioned to selling stakes in businesses and raising money for them, specifically acquiring distressed assets like Radio Shack, Pier One, and Steinmart.
• The plan was to flip these companies using e-commerce, eliminate brick-and-mortar, and leverage marketing.

Tai was always known for running these ads telling people, you know, you got to sign up for his 47 rules for success, the 12 rules for, you know, whatever sales, the five ways to get through life. I mean, he always had something to sell.

And for a while, you know, he kind of got away with it. Nobody was really going after him because at the end of the day when you sell knowledge and you overpromise and underdel people don't get too mad. I mean people like me would kind of call you a grifter. That's really the worst that's going to happen to you.

The problem with Tai was he's one of these guys who went from, you know, trying to sell the fact he's this business savant cuz he quotes Charlie Munger all the time to now taking money from people and actually raising money for uh some businesses that he was going to run.

Rev was the holding company and they bought a bunch of distressed assets. You may know Radio Shack, uh, Pier One, Steinmart, a bunch of companies that went out of business and Tai bought them up with a bunch of other people's money and said that they were going to raise basically flip them using ecom, take away the brick and mortar, bring in the great marketing from Tai Lopez.

This section outlines the shift from selling abstract knowledge or success programs to directly engaging in investment and business acquisition, a move that appears to have led to more severe scrutiny and allegations.

Investor's Personal Experience and Allegations [04:01]

• An individual shared their experience, highlighting lies and omissions as the worst part.
• Companies were claimed to be doing "great" and having "awesome" performance.
• An alleged promise of a wire transfer for repayment was accompanied by a confirmation screenshot, but the money was never received.
• This pattern of sending confirmations without sending funds and subsequent ghosting is described as lying and deception.
• There's a mention of potential criminal liability for such actions.

I actually spoke to somebody who basically talked about his experience with Tai Lopez. The worst part about it by far were all the lies and omissions. They kind of say like, "Hey, look, I get that businesses fail, but specifically they were dealing with Maya and getting paid back some of their uh funds."

This was at a time where it was not admitted that these companies were doing very poorly. They were saying, "Oh, we're doing so great. We're doing so awesome."

And so Maya was behind the scenes promising to pay this guy back his wire and literally sending according to him confirmations of the wire transfer while not actually sending the money.

Like and if you guys don't know that can be uh there can be some criminal liability there sometimes. So you know incredibly serious accusations.

The personal testimony details a disturbing pattern of alleged deceit in financial dealings, where assurances of repayment were made but not fulfilled, leading to significant financial loss and a sense of betrayal for the investor.

Detailed Account of Non-Payment and Ghosting [04:45]

• An investor recounts investing approximately $275,000 with a promise of 20% annual returns for two years, plus a return of capital and a 40% balloon payment.
• Monthly interest payments were initially received, and things seemed to be going well.
• When the principal repayment was due, a request was made to postpone payment for two weeks.
• A "test wire" was sent and received, followed by an assurance that the full wire was sent, but the investor never received it.
• This was followed by a week-long period of no contact, then a claim of a bank issue and another attempt with a small "$50 wire," which was received.
• However, the larger payment was again not received, and the investor began to be "ghosted."
• The situation escalated with a screenshot of a wire confirmation being sent, but the wire itself was not received, leading to about a month of further ghosting.
• Excuses for the lack of communication included traveling and a parent's death, after which the investor was completely ghosted.
• The formation of WhatsApp communities for investors initially fostered camaraderie, but later revealed that others were also not getting their money.
• Approximately six months later, it was announced that the companies would file for bankruptcy.

My name is Jared Gats. I've known of Tai for you know obviously many years. He was always um you know the the biggest internet marketer out there. I mean the deal was great. It was uh you know 20% returns on your money uh for two years and then there was supposed to be uh a return of capital after 2 years and a balloon payment of 40% u paid with your principal returned.

And so you know I threw in um I think it was like $275,000 or something like that. and uh you know and they were paying back you know monthly uh interest payments and things were going really well. Uh, and then right around the time when the principal was due, and I'm a very like easygoing, reasonable person.

Right around the time the principal was due, uh, you know, Maya reached out and she was like, um, like, "Hey, is it cool if we postpone your payment for like 2 weeks? We're just getting things in order." And, you know, they sent a test wire and I got the test wire and they said, "Okay, cool. We sent your wire."

And, you know, a day goes by, didn't get it. Two days go by, didn't get it. Three days, didn't get it. Hey, you know, Maya, I didn't get the wire. Um, cool. Let me look into it for you. Let me figure out what's going on.

Um about a week later. Hey, sorry Jared. There was an issue with the bank. We're going to have to try this again. Um uh let me know uh if you got the this other test wire. So next day I get another like $50 wire. Yeah, got it. No problem. Great. All right, cool. I'm going to send the rest of it. Uh of course I don't get the wire. Uh I don't hear from them for a few days, you know.

And then they said they sent the wire again and I didn't get it. And then I started getting ghosted and that's when I was like, and to be honest, I'm not the type of person that like, you know, I get it. Investing you you sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But when there's lies and deception and complete and utter disrespect, that's where things start to get hairy.

And so I would I would, you know, start to get ghosted for a little bit longer and longer until it was like, "Hey, what's going on with this?" Um, and, you know, it got to a point where she started she sent me a screenshot. Hey, the wire got sent out. I'm like, okay, well, if I got a screenshot of a wire and then I did I didn't get the wire, of course.

And um and then I got ghosted for like about a month. And and that point I'm like, hey, like you know, at this point it's just rude. Like can you at least just be on like just tell me what's going on. Um and then I finally hear back from her like a little bit over a month later and she's like sorry I was traveling. I'm like are you kidding me? you're traveling like every I mean what does that mean to me?

Uh and then you know we started talking again and the last message I heard was like hey sorry I think it was her dad she sorry my dad died or something and then I just got completely ghosted from there.

Um and at this point like you know like you know they had set up these WhatsApp communities with all the investors which at first it was all this camaraderie and everyone's like hyping each other up and then people start getting a little bit u weirded out that you know and you start to see other people aren't getting their money.

Um and then finally I don't remember the timeline exactly. It was probably about 6 months later that I you know that that we heard that they're going to have to file for bankruptcy.

This account details a protracted and manipulative process of non-payment, characterized by broken promises, fabricated excuses, and eventual ghosting, culminating in the bankruptcy of the involved entities.

Current Activities and Warnings [08:23]

• Despite allegations, the individual is still actively promoting products and services through vlogs and by encouraging texts to a private number.
• Recent posts mention "malicious actors" trying to take people down, which the speaker interprets as vague references to personal struggles.
• The speaker warns that people should not trust individuals who have a history of "grifting" with their money.
• A framework was leaked, revealing a "three pillar close" sales technique that encourages using credit or debit cards, or discussing financing options with services like CLA, PayPal Credit, or Affirm.
• The speaker notes that the individual did not respond to requests for comment regarding the SEC's allegations.

Now if you're wondering what's going on with Tai now that he has gotten these allegations against him, I it's not going well. He's still hawking things. This was his Tai Lopez vlog. Uh he wants you to text him a private number and he's going to, you know, potentially sell you on something.

Uh but, you know, this is just a few days ago. He's talking about the malicious actors that are trying to take you down. It very much feels like, you know, vague posting about what he's actually going through.

And make no mistake, we live in a world where you're trying to be controlled both maliciously by people and indirectly. There's groups of people that are trying to control you that don't necessarily wake up in the morning and say they want to ruin your life, but the structure of the system is built to control you.

Now I gave Tai an opportunity to respond to the allegations the SEC made. He did not reply. If he does, I will pin it. Okay, that's basically it.

Despite facing significant legal challenges and allegations of fraud, the individual continues their business activities, employing aggressive sales tactics and making veiled references to their situation, while remaining unresponsive to official requests for comment.