Business Ethics Show & Tell presentation!

1. SHOW & TELL
Danny Tift

2. JEREMY LUNDIN
30-year old founded and ran his own
investment firm, Big Island Capital.
Records showed Lundin began operating as
an unlicensed adviser in 2013.
Faced investigations by FBI and IRS for
December 2014-May 2017 amid federal
charges of an alleged Ponzi scheme.
Less than a month later, Lundin pleaded guilty
of one account of mail fraud and one count of
money laundering.

3. LUNDIN’S PONZI
SCHEME
The investment firm’s cover was in options trading.
Made claims to potential investors that his firm showed returns of 67% in 2013 and 97.8% in 2014.
From December 2015 till May 2017, Lundin solicited more than $1 million from dozens of investors who
trusted him with their wealth.
Misrepresented the contents of his brokerage account, where Big Island’s Capitals assets were
supposedly kept safe. Once claimed the firm’s capital was $730,000 before he even open a brokerage
account.
His victim investors were told to make checks payable to Big Island Capital because Lundin could then
deposit these funds into an account he established in the company’s name.
To appear legitimate, Lundin created phony account statements while providing online access to
fictitious quarterly statements.

4. HOW DID HE GET
CAUGHT?
Authorities found that $992,000 was deposited into the Big Island Capital account; over that same time period,
$933,950 was transferred directly into his and his wife’s personal checking account.
One example of his mishandling of funds occurred on January 27, 2016. One of his clients gave Lundin’s firm $98,000
and, instead of investing the money, Lundin immediately used these funds to purchase a $71,118 Maserati.
He used at least $366,000 of the firm’s money to pay off personal debt.
Lundin also is accused of using funds to buy a 32-foot boat, take a trip to Paris, and cover the cost of a $15,000 baby
shower.
His Ponzi scheme ended up affecting 37 individuals who invested in the firm. Sentence not yet scheduled.

5. HOW UNETHICAL
WERE HIS ACTIONS
• Caught bilking investors of more than $1
million over a two-year span.
• Showed little to no remorse for his actions
or his complete lack of responsibility for
investors.
• The clear ethical issue at hand is not for
debate, rather a discussion on what to do
going forward.
• How to look out for phony advisers,
accounts, or firms in the future

6. THE ETHICAL
DILEMMA
It has proved to be quite difficult catching phony investors without free access to a substantial amount of records.
Additionally, Ponzi Scheme’s can occur within both start-up investment firms and reputable companies.
It is imperative that people look at investment firms with a critical eye before making the decision to invest.