South Bay Acquisitions, LLC

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged South Bay Acquisitions, LLC, and its principal, John N. Matson of San Diego, with defrauding five investors, including former brokerage clients, in an alleged Ponzi scheme. Between January 2012 and September 2021, Matson and South Bay raised over $1.5 million through unregistered securities offerings, promising to manage the proceeds for the investors’ benefit. However, the SEC alleges that Matson misappropriated funds for personal use and operated South Bay as a Ponzi scheme, using new investor money to pay returns to earlier investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, and civil penalties for violations of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.