Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission has obtained an interim order from the Court of First Instance to freeze approximately $2.66 million in the bank accounts of Mr Heriberto Perez Valdes in connection with a suspected pyramid and Ponzi scheme.

The SFC alleges that Valdes was involved in the scheme operated by DFRF Enterprises LLC and DFRF Enterprises, LLC (collectively, DFRF) and their founder, Mr Daniel Fernandes Rojo Filho. It says that Filho misled a number of Hong Kong investors into investing in DFRF, believing in Filho’s claim that DFRF was to be listed in the US when in fact this was not the case.  They went on depositing money into various bank accounts in Hong Kong, including those held under Valdes’ name.

Neither Filho nor DFRF hold SFC’s licences to deal in or advise on securities.

As part of the proceedings, the SFC obtained an interim freezing order on 13 December 2016 against Sealand Trading (Hong Kong) Limited (Sealand Trading) which the SFC alleges also received investors’ monies under the scheme.

The interim orders will remain in force until the hearing of the SFC’s application for final orders against all parties, the date of which has yet to be fixed. The investigation continues.