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MANILA, Philippines — A manufacturer of recyclable materials found to have been soliciting investments from the public without a license had its corporate registration revoked and was ordered to pay a P1-million fine, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In a statement over the weekend, the corporate watchdog said Ecomamoni Environmental Recyclable Materials Manufacturing Inc. had violated the Revised Corporation Code (RCC), Securities Regulation Code (SRC) and Financial Products and Services Consumer Protection Act.
The SEC noted in its Feb. 25 order that Ecomamoni had enticed the public to invest in the company by buying any of its recycling plans for as much as P165,000.
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Investors reportedly had to complete certain tasks daily to receive up to P7,000 in profit.
Ecomamoni, however, was not licensed to sell securities and solicit investments, the commission pointed out, as the company’s primary purpose was to manufacture recyclable materials.
Not allowed
Under the RCC, corporations are not allowed to do business beyond what is declared in their articles of incorporation.
Likewise, the SRC mandates that selling or offering securities cannot be done without a registration statement approved by the SEC.
“The scheme being offered by [Ecomamoni] is clearly in the nature of a Ponzi scheme where the profits or payouts shall be taken from incoming investors or additional pay-ins of existing member-investors,” the SEC said in its order, adding that Ecomamoni did not have any “underlying legitimate business” where it could source its promised profits.
The company also listed five incorporators—Darlene Tapel, William Cudal, Lynlyn Ratilla, Renante Baron and Emlyn Oquendo—but Oquendo, Ratilla and Cudal denied involvement, stressing their names were used against their will.
Still, they were ordered to pay a fine of P1 million along with the other listed incorporators since they had failed to prove their innocence.
“Their lone and self-serving allegations are not proof,” the SEC said.
The commission had issued an advisory in November 2024 warning the public not to invest in Ecomamoni as it was not authorized to sell securities.
By January this year, the SEC issued a show cause order directing the company to explain the solicitations.