The SEC Filed a Fraud Complaint Against Philly-area Founder Josh Verne

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil fraud complaint against Philly-area startup founder Josh Verne this month.

The Philadelphia Inquirer first caught the filing, reporting today that Gladwyne-based Verne’s company Ownable, which rented electronic devices to people who couldn’t afford to buy them, raised $31 million from investors. However, the SEC said Verne spent more than $9 million of the funding raised on personal expenses.

“The SEC also accuses Verne of hiding Ownable’s losses through $5 million in ‘Ponzi-like’ payments to reassure some investors, so he could attract new ones,” per the Inquirer. “In other cases, he made promised investments, then sold them, and pocketed shareholders’ money instead of giving it to them, according to the SEC filing.”

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