CLEARWATER, FL / ACCESSWIRE / February 21, 2019 / Spartan Securities Group, Ltd. ('Spartan') and its affiliated company, Island Capital Management, LLC, doing business as Island Stock Transfer ('Island'), are disappointed in the decision by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission ('SEC') to file this Complaint.
Spartan, Island, and their principals vehemently deny any wrongdoing and look forward to taking this case to trial. Contrary to what is alleged and/or insinuated in the Complaint, neither Spartan nor Island (nor any of their employees) were involved in the creation or operation of any of the 19 named companies listed in the Complaint. Those 19 companies - which it is important to note represent a miniscule fraction of the thousands of legitimate issuers that Spartan and Island have worked closely with over the years - were, unbeknownst to Spartan and Island, operated by alleged fraudsters.
According to the SEC, those fraudsters went to great lengths to make everyone - including Spartan and Island, as well as the SEC itself - believe that they were real businesses with actual operations.
In fact, before Spartan or Island provided any services to any of these 19 companies, each company prepared and filed a registration statement with the SEC. In turn, each registration statement was declared effective by the SEC. The representations the companies made to the SEC in support of their respective registration statements - i.e., the representations on which the SEC relied and which it accepted - were the same those companies made to Spartan and Island, and the same ones on which Spartan and Island relied. In short, Spartan and Island - just like the SEC - were victims of the fraud that these individuals behind these 19 companies were committing, and not, as the Complaint alleges, themselves perpetrators of any fraud.
Spartan and Island appreciate all of the expressions and offers of support already provided by a multitude of our friends and colleagues, including law firms, other financial institutions and issuer clients alike. We have always strived to create and maintain a stellar reputation for service in our industry, and will continue to do so.
The micro-cap and small-cap industry has endured an inordinate amount of regulatory assaults over the last ten years. Alan Wolper, partner with Ulmer & Berne LLP in Chicago, longtime outside counsel for Spartan and Island, stated, 'My clients and I look forward to our day in court, as we are confident that any reasonable judge or jury will conclude that the SEC is unable to carry its burden of proof.'
Spartan and Island wish to reassure their clients that this litigation will not affect the services our 500+ issuer clients have come to expect and our services will continue with the same great staff that our clients have come to appreciate.
Media Contact:
Alan M. Wolper / Heidi VonderHeide
Ulmer & Berne LLP
312.658.6564
SOURCE: Spartan Securities Group, ltd.
View source version on accesswire.com:
https://www.accesswire.com/536366/Spartan-Securiities-Group-Island-Stock-Transfer-Statement-Regarding-Recent-SEC-Litigation
