R.L. Aggregates ordered to stop illegal investment offer
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ordered R.L. Aggregates and Diversified Lending Group Inc. to stop soliciting investments from the public, citing a fraudulent scheme that used falsified registration documents.
In an order dated July 27, the SEC issued a cease and desist order (CDO) against the lending company for soliciting and offering investment contracts sans proper authorization.
The SEC further directed the company to withdraw its internet promotions and stop its officers and agents from making any banking transaction or funds transfer to preserve investors’ assets.
The order covers R.L. Aggregates’ directors, namely, Roberto Llorente, Jennylyn Clemente, Patricio De Villa, Carlo Mamaril and Alvin Camanero, alongside operators, officers, representatives, salesmen and agents, including Ashley Reyes, Maya Gonzalez, Randy Dela Cruz and Kenneth Daniel Papa.
The SEC said R.L. Aggregates had been enticing the public to invest in exchange for guaranteed returns of 1 percent per day or 30 percent per month over a lock-in period of three months. Potential investors were asked to shell out at least P1,000 to P500,000, with the promise of dividends to be paid out every 15th and 30th of the month.
While R.L. Aggregates is registered and allowed to operate as a lending company, it has never secured a secondary license to solicit investments from the public as required by the Securities Regulation Code, according to the SEC.
An investigation by the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD) revealed that R.L. Aggregates has been using an altered and falsified copy of its articles of incorporation.
The EIPD also found that R.L. Aggregates had falsely declared itself the mother company of cooperative and lending groups that cater to agriculture, small businesses and small-scale mining in Masbate.
The SEC further noted that R.L. Aggregates’ authorized capitalization was only P1.5 million, which would make its business model “not sustainable and will likely cause grave or irreparable injury or prejudice to the investing public.”
