Feds seen entering Stanford Financial office
Firm being probed for paying high yields even as markets have slid
Feb. 17:
BREAKING NEWS
updated 21 minutes ago
Federal agents with the U.S. Marshals Service entered the Houston office of Stanford Financial Group on Tuesday, according to a Reuters eyewitness on the scene.
About 15 people, some wearing jackets identifying them as U.S. marshals, entered the lobby of Stanford's office in the Houston Galleria area, the eyewitness said.
The Houston office of the U.S. Marshals Service had no immediate comment. A Stanford spokesman was not immediately available to comment.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and state regulators in Florida and Texas are investigating Stanford, which has 30,000 clients in 131 countries with $8.5 billion in assets.
They are examining the bank's ability to pay high yields on certificates of deposit that it says are invested mainly in stocks, real estate, hedge funds and precious metals, many of which have lost value in recent months.
The FBI's Houston office has also joined the investigation of the company owned by Texas billionaire Robert Allen Stanford, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The New York Times reported Tuesday that the SEC accused Stanford â plus two top executives and some affiliates â of fraud.
The paper said the SEC filed a complaint in Dallas federal court asserting that Stanford and two associates with misrepresenting the safety and liquidity of about $8 billion of high-yielding CDs held in the firm's bank in Antigua.
The complaint names James M. Davis, a director and chief financial officer of Stanford Group and the Antigua-based bank affiliate, and Laura Pendergest-Holt, the chief investment officer of both organizations, the New York Times said.
Firm being probed for paying high yields even as markets have slid
Feb. 17:
BREAKING NEWS
updated 21 minutes ago
Federal agents with the U.S. Marshals Service entered the Houston office of Stanford Financial Group on Tuesday, according to a Reuters eyewitness on the scene.
About 15 people, some wearing jackets identifying them as U.S. marshals, entered the lobby of Stanford's office in the Houston Galleria area, the eyewitness said.
The Houston office of the U.S. Marshals Service had no immediate comment. A Stanford spokesman was not immediately available to comment.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and state regulators in Florida and Texas are investigating Stanford, which has 30,000 clients in 131 countries with $8.5 billion in assets.
They are examining the bank's ability to pay high yields on certificates of deposit that it says are invested mainly in stocks, real estate, hedge funds and precious metals, many of which have lost value in recent months.
The FBI's Houston office has also joined the investigation of the company owned by Texas billionaire Robert Allen Stanford, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The New York Times reported Tuesday that the SEC accused Stanford â plus two top executives and some affiliates â of fraud.
The paper said the SEC filed a complaint in Dallas federal court asserting that Stanford and two associates with misrepresenting the safety and liquidity of about $8 billion of high-yielding CDs held in the firm's bank in Antigua.
The complaint names James M. Davis, a director and chief financial officer of Stanford Group and the Antigua-based bank affiliate, and Laura Pendergest-Holt, the chief investment officer of both organizations, the New York Times said.
