The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a complaint against The Spaventa Group, alleging it ran a scheme from Long Island and New Jersey that sold more than $74 million in shares of private AI and tech companies—including SpaceX, Anthropic, Perplexity, and Anduril—to over 800 retail investors and retirees between December 2020 and June 2025.
The SEC claims investors paid markups averaging 46% above what Spaventa's own firms paid for the same positions, with some markups reaching 91%, despite promises of no hidden fees.
What happened
The SEC filed a complaint Friday against The Spaventa Group, a Long Island-based firm run by former broker Andrew Spaventa, alleging it operated a boiler room scheme with more than 100 agents making thousands of calls to sell shares in pre-IPO companies including SpaceX, Anduril, Anthropic, and Perplexity. Over 800 people bought in over four and a half years from December 2020 to June 2025, generating more than $74 million across 11 private funds run from offices in Long Island and New Jersey.
Why it matters
More than 650 investors put in $100,000 or less, and over 100 were retirees, making this one of the largest pre-IPO fraud cases the SEC has brought this year—significantly larger than a recent case against Giovanni Pennetta involving $10 million. The SEC alleges investors paid on average 46% more for their positions than Spaventa's own companies paid, with markups running as high as 91%, while being told there would be no hidden fees.
What to watch
Spaventa has denied the SEC's claims. The case underscores the risk of fraud in the largely unregulated secondary private-market, where demand for shares in hot AI and tech companies remains extremely high. The Southern District of New York is handling the case.
Ask the AI about this article →
The Spaventa case arrives at a moment of exceptional froth in private-market AI company share trading. The secondary market for pre-IPO stakes in hot tech and AI firms is both massive and unregulated, creating conditions in which bad actors can thrive. The scale here—more than $74 million across 11 funds over four and a half years—reflects the enormous appetite among retail investors and retirees to own pieces of legendary private companies, especially as IPOs have remained elusive for household names like SpaceX and Anthropic. This is not the first such enforcement the SEC has brought this year; Giovanni Pennetta faced charges for misappropriating $10 million while selling fraudulent shares of companies like Anduril, and ultimately pled guilty to wire fraud. What distinguishes the Spaventa case is both its dollar volume and the breadth of its victims—over 800 people, with more than 650 investing $100,000 or less and over 100 retirees among them. The allegation that investors were promised no hidden fees while actually paying markups averaging 46% (and sometimes 91%) amplifies the harm and the deception.
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