Joined a start up committing fraud

Not really sure what to do haven’t been in this situation before but I joined a web3 tech start up and I quit after a few months because i have a strong suspicion that the CEO is committing fraud:

- laundering the money

- stealing company funds and spending it on himself e.g. I tried to follow the financials but it didn’t add up.. there’s a tonne of cash missing from the business

- lying about company financials to our advisor (an investment bank) pretending revenue and profit was higher than it is

- treating staff illegally

I quit because of my suspicions but it’s now been a while and the company is still operating, I really want to report it anonymously but not sure how.. figured I’d post here to see if anyone has any advice

8 Comments
 

Look into whistleblower protections and incentives. You could get a chunk of $ recovered by sounding the alarm

https://www.sec.gov/whistleblower

The Commission is authorized by Congress to provide monetary awards to eligible individuals who come forward with high-quality original information that leads to a Commission enforcement action in which over $1,000,000 in sanctions is ordered. The range for awards is between 10% and 30% of the money collected.The Office of the Whistleblower was established to administer the SEC's whistleblower program. We understand that the decision to come forward with information about securities fraud or other wrongdoing is not one taken lightly, and we are here to answer any questions you may have. You can reach the Office of the Whistleblower at (202) 551-4790.

 

We can discuss this privately for more information, but I worked at the SEC and currently work in another federal agency dealing with money laundering crimes. I would recommend reporting to the FBI as well as filing a TCR with the SEC. Any evidence you can include in your filings will be key. TCRs with material pieces of evidence greatly increase the Commission's ability to act (I.E. Enforcement to pick it up, + get subpoenas later on). FBI's CID MLFBU will be the group which will likely be involved if there is money laundering. Follow up on your tip or report - there can be an insane amount of schizo tips, reports, TCRs (for the SEC), so making sure your filing is read by a real person and understood to be coming from an insider and not a crazy person, will be key.  

 

Well, well, well, looks like we got ourselves a little whistle-blower here. Just remember, snitches get stitches, but if you play your cards right, you might be able to get a cut of that sweet embezzled cash. I suggest reaching out to the SEC and asking for a reward for your insider information.

 

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