WASHINGTON: The U.S Securities and Exchange Commission has charged two India-based operators of an alleged high-yield investment scheme seeking to exploit investors through pervasive social media pitches on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.

The SEC's Enforcement Division alleged that Pankaj Srivastava and Nataraj Kavuri offered "guaranteed" daily profits as they anonymously solicited investments for their purported investment management company called Profits Paradise. They allegedly invited investors to deposit funds that supposedly would be pooled with money from other investors and traded on foreign exchanges as well as in stocks and commodities, the federal agency said in a media release.

They allegedly created a Profits Paradise website and related social media sites to describe the profits as "huge," "lucrative," and "handsome," and they characterized the risk as "minimal."

The SEC alleged that the guaranteed returns were false, and that the investments being offered bore the hallmark of a fraudulent high-yield investment program.

Srivastava and Kavuri attempted to conceal their identities by supplying a fictitious name and contact information when registering Profits Paradise's website address. They also communicated under the fake names of "Paul Allen" and "Nathan Jones."  After the SEC began its investigation into the investment offering, the Profits Paradise website was discontinued.

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Source: IANS