A US$150 million settlement has been reached in the largest fraud in the history of the U.S. EB-5 immigrant visa program.
Brokerage Raymond James reached the settlement in a lawsuit that involved the financing of the failed Jay Peak Resort and Burke Mountain Hotel in Vermont, according to Investment News.
Last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission froze the assets of Jay Peak and related businesses for allegedly misusing millions of dollars raised through the EB-5 program, which allows foreign investors and their immediate families to obtain permanent residency cards by investing in a U.S. business. It alleged that Ariel Quiros, owner of Q Resorts, and William Stenger, president and CEO of Jay Peak, a Vermont ski resort owner by Q Resorts, stole and misused the money. The brokerage was named because of wire transfers used; it denied any liability.
According to the settlement, funds will be used toward the claims of investors and creditors and will allow the receiver to complete construction of the Jay Peak Resort.