Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz

ChapmanAlbin is investigating Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz, the Managing Partner of Toltec Capital LLC, an unregistered private equity firm based in San Francisco, California. According to SEC enforcement records, Mendia-Alcaraz raised approximately $3.3 million from at least 41 investors through a series of at least six private investment funds, including one marketed as an S&P 500 ETF fund, while making materially false and misleading statements, misappropriating investor funds for personal expenses, and making Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors using money from new ones. In December 2025, a federal court entered a final judgment permanently enjoining Mendia-Alcaraz from participating in securities offerings and ordering disgorgement of more than $2.2 million; the SEC subsequently instituted a separate administrative proceeding in April 2026 seeking to bar him from the investment advisory industry. If you invested with Toltec Capital or were advised to do so by a financial professional, this page explains what the public record shows and what options may be available to you. This page is based on public records including SEC enforcement filings and court documents.

Snapshot

Name: Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz (also known as Bernardo Mendia)
Entity: Toltec Capital LLC
Location: San Francisco, California
SEC Enforcement Record: View SEC Litigation Release LR-26457
Primary concern: Securities fraud, misappropriation of investor funds, unregistered securities offerings, Ponzi-like payments
Products mentioned in public records: Unregistered private investment funds, including the Toltec S&P 500 Index ETF Fund IV
Regulatory actions: Federal court permanent injunction (December 16, 2025); SEC administrative proceeding instituted (April 2, 2026); disgorgement of $2,207,524 plus $150,866 in prejudgment interest ordered; civil penalty of $2,207,524 imposed
SEC Case: 3:24-cv-05823-RS (N.D. Cal.); Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-22619

Related Investigations

• Toltec Capital LLC

Key Facts and Public Records

• SEC Final Judgment, Case No. 3:24-cv-05823-RS, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, entered December 16, 2025
• SEC Administrative Proceeding, IA-6956, File No. 3-22619, Order Instituting Proceedings, issued April 2, 2026
• From at least December 2019 through September 2023, Mendia-Alcaraz raised approximately $3.3 million from at least 41 investors across at least six unregistered private investment funds
• As of the date of the federal court filing, approximately 33 of 41 investors had not received their principal back, totaling approximately $2.2 million in lost principal, not including owed interest and dividends
• Mendia-Alcaraz guaranteed investors full return of their principal — and, for certain funds, interest or dividends — when, according to the SEC, Toltec Capital lacked the financial means to fulfill those guarantees
• Investor funds were promised for investment purposes but allegedly used for Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors and for personal expenses
• Mendia-Alcaraz allegedly portrayed himself as a successful asset manager while failing to disclose multiple bankruptcy filings and a criminal history involving check fraud and theft
• The court permanently barred Mendia-Alcaraz from participating in securities offerings (other than for his personal account) and from serving as an officer or director of any public company
• Disgorgement of $2,207,524 plus prejudgment interest of $150,866 ordered; civil penalty of $2,207,524 imposed against Mendia-Alcaraz

More Info

Registration and background

Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz operated through Toltec Capital LLC, an unregistered private equity firm he wholly owned, controlled, and managed as its Managing Partner. Toltec Capital and Mendia-Alcaraz functioned as investment advisers to at least one pooled investment fund — the Toltec S&P 500 Index ETF Fund IV — and Mendia-Alcaraz personally solicited investors and managed fund assets. Because Toltec Capital was never registered with FINRA or the SEC as a broker-dealer or investment adviser, he does not appear on FINRA BrokerCheck. The SEC enforcement record for this matter is publicly available through the SEC’s litigation release database.

Regulatory and enforcement actions

On December 16, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California entered a final judgment against Mendia-Alcaraz and Toltec Capital. The court permanently enjoined them from future violations of the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act, and the Investment Advisers Act, and permanently barred Mendia-Alcaraz from participating in securities offerings through any entity he owns or controls. The court also barred him from serving as an officer or director of any public company.
The court ordered Mendia-Alcaraz and Toltec Capital to pay disgorgement of $2,207,524 — representing net profits from the alleged fraud — plus prejudgment interest of $150,866. The court additionally imposed a civil penalty of $2,207,524 against Mendia-Alcaraz personally.
On April 2, 2026, the SEC instituted a separate administrative proceeding under the Investment Advisers Act seeking to determine what further remedial action is appropriate, up to and including a bar from associating with any investment adviser.

What the SEC found

According to SEC records, the alleged scheme worked roughly like this: Mendia-Alcaraz and Toltec Capital raised money from investors by offering participation in private investment funds, including one presented as a vehicle for investing in S&P 500 exchange-traded funds. The fund’s offering documents claimed Toltec had developed proprietary analytics capable of predicting changes in the S&P 500 index. Investors were told their principal was guaranteed and that they would receive interest or dividend payments.

According to the SEC, those representations were false. Toltec Capital did not have the financial means to back the guarantees it made to investors. Rather than investing the money as promised, Mendia-Alcaraz allegedly used investor funds to make payments to earlier investors — a hallmark of Ponzi scheme mechanics — and to cover his own personal expenses.

The SEC also found that Mendia-Alcaraz presented himself as a successful asset manager without disclosing material facts about his background, including multiple bankruptcy filings and a criminal history involving check fraud and theft. Those omissions, according to the SEC, were part of a broader pattern of material misrepresentations made to attract and retain investors.

What this could mean for investors

The core of what the SEC describes here is fraud and misappropriation: investor money taken under false pretenses, used for unauthorized purposes, and not returned. Combined with what the SEC describes as misrepresentation and omission — false guarantees of principal return, undisclosed bankruptcies, undisclosed criminal history — the public record outlines a scenario in which investors may have had no realistic basis for evaluating the actual risks they were taking.

The SEC’s description of Ponzi-like payments is relevant to Ponzi scheme claims, where early investors are paid with funds raised from later investors rather than from genuine investment returns. That structure, if proven, means the returns or payments some investors may have received were not the product of legitimate investment activity.

If you invested in any Toltec Capital fund, or if a broker or financial adviser recommended a Toltec Capital investment to you, your situation may warrant a closer look. ChapmanAlbin works on contingency — there is no cost to you unless we recover money on your behalf. The first step is a free, no-obligation consultation with one of our attorneys.

Common Warning Signs

• You were told your investment principal was guaranteed and that you would receive regular interest or dividend payments, but those payments stopped or your principal was never returned.
• Your investment was described as tied to S&P 500 index funds or ETFs, but you could not verify the actual holdings or performance in a standard brokerage account.
• The person managing your money was not affiliated with a registered broker-dealer or registered investment advisory firm you could look up independently.
• You received payments for a period of time but were later told the fund could no longer return your money.
• You were not provided with audited financial statements or independent verification of the fund’s performance or holdings.
• The manager’s background — including prior bankruptcies or legal history — was not disclosed to you before you invested.

Documents to Gather

• Any offering documents, subscription agreements, or investor agreements you signed when investing with Toltec Capital
• Account statements, fund performance reports, or any written communications showing the status of your investment
• Emails, letters, or text messages from Mendia-Alcaraz or Toltec Capital about your investment, returns, or requests to withdraw your money
• Any promotional materials or pitch decks used to solicit your investment
• Records of any payments you received from the fund, including dates and amounts
• Documentation showing how you were introduced to Toltec Capital, including any recommendations from a financial adviser or broker

FAQs

What did the SEC find against Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz?

According to SEC enforcement records, Mendia-Alcaraz raised approximately $3.3 million from at least 41 investors through at least six unregistered private investment funds operated through Toltec Capital LLC. The SEC alleges he guaranteed investors full return of their principal while lacking the means to do so, used investor funds for Ponzi-like payments to other investors and for personal expenses, and presented himself as a successful asset manager without disclosing his bankruptcy filings and criminal history. A federal court entered a permanent injunction against him in December 2025, and the SEC instituted an administrative proceeding in April 2026.

Can I pursue a claim if I was advised to invest in Toltec Capital by a broker or financial adviser?

Potentially yes. If a licensed broker, registered investment adviser, or financial professional recommended a Toltec Capital investment to you, their recommendation may be subject to separate scrutiny, including whether they conducted reasonable due diligence before recommending an unregistered private fund. A claim in that context would focus on the conduct of the recommending professional, not only on Mendia-Alcaraz or Toltec Capital directly.

What does the court’s disgorgement order mean for investors?

The court ordered Mendia-Alcaraz and Toltec Capital to disgorge $2,207,524 — the net profits the SEC alleges were gained through the fraud — plus prejudgment interest. The SEC may distribute those funds to harmed investors through a Fair Fund process subject to court approval. Disgorgement and civil penalty payments do not automatically resolve every investor’s individual losses, and your specific recovery would depend on your circumstances and the distribution plan, if any, that the court approves.

Was Toltec Capital a registered investment firm?

No. Toltec Capital LLC was an unregistered private equity firm. Mendia-Alcaraz and Toltec Capital functioned as unregistered investment advisers for at least part of the period at issue. Because neither was registered with FINRA or the SEC as a broker-dealer or investment adviser during the relevant period, they do not appear in FINRA BrokerCheck.

How does ChapmanAlbin charge for this type of case?

ChapmanAlbin works on contingency. If we take your case and do not recover money for you, you owe us nothing. There is no upfront fee and no cost to speak with one of our attorneys in a free initial consultation.

Disclaimer

This page is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The information presented is based on publicly available records including FINRA BrokerCheck and FINRA disciplinary filings. Past outcomes are not a guarantee of future results. Every matter depends on its own facts and circumstances and should be evaluated individually. This site contains attorney advertising. Any reference to past cases or successes should not be construed as a guarantee of any future outcome.