Freshman Rep. Grayson Taken to Cleaners in Ponzi Scheme
Roll Call Staff
Freshman Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) lost $3 million in a stock swindle between 2000 and 2005, a Florida television station reported this week.
According to Orlando’s Local 6, Grayson was an investor in a Ponzi scheme run by the company Derivium Capital. The scheme allowed Grayson and other investors to turn over stock to Derivium in exchange for cash loans and redeem the value later if the stock prices increased.
The station cited court filings indicating that Grayson transferred about $29 million in stock to the fund, taking out about $26 million in cash. A South Carolina court ruled earlier this year that Derivium shareholders were owed about $270 million in lost profits and that Grayson’s share of that would be about $34 million.
Grayson, an attorney who started a lucrative telecom company, has not yet filed financial disclosure forms for 2008, but even with his losses, he is likely to rank among the top 10 richest Members of Congress this year. As a candidate last year, he reported assets worth more than $25 million.
He is a member of the Financial Services Committee.
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