SEC Charges Kubient's Former CEO, CFO and Audit Committee Chair with Fraud, Lying to Auditors

SEC Charges Former Chairman and CEO of Tech Co. Kubient With Fraud and Lying to Auditors

The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed charges against Paul D. Roberts, the former Chair, CEO, and president of Kubient Inc.; Joshua A. Weiss, the company’s former chief financial officer; and Grainne M. Coen, the company’s former audit committee chair, for their roles in a scheme in which Kubient overstated and misrepresented its revenue in connection with two public stock offerings.

According to the SEC’s complaint against Roberts, shortly before Kubient’s initial public offering, Roberts fabricated reports that Kubient had successfully tested a software program that detects real-time fraud during digital advertising auctions, allowing Kubient to recognize $1.3 million in revenue, which was nearly all of its revenue leading up to the offering. The complaint alleges that Kubient did not actually perform the tests and thus should not have recognized the revenue. In a separate complaint, the SEC alleges that Weiss and Coen learned during Kubient’s secondary stock offering that the tests had not been performed, but instead of investigating or correcting the misrepresentations, Weiss and Coen perpetuated the scheme by making false statements about the revenue at issue. Additionally, Roberts, Weiss, and Coen allegedly each lied to Kubient’s independent auditor about the revenue or whether they had become aware of any concerns about it. According to the SEC’s complaints, Kubient raised approximately $33 million in the two stock offerings using offering materials that touted the misrepresentations about the success of the tests and the revenue.

CZ Set to Be Released From Prison on September 29

Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who is currently serving a four-month prison sentence, will be a free man by the end of the month.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons website, Zhao – also known as inmate 88087-510 – will be released from custody on Sept. 29, 118 days after reporting to a low-security prison, Lompoc II, on California’s central coast. He spent three months in Lompoc II before being moved to a halfway house in San Pedro, California in late August.

Ex-MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud Conspiracy After Taking Plea Deal

Former MoviePass chief executive Mitch Lowe has pled guilty to a securities fraud charge related to his role in swindling investors about the company’s monthly movie subscription service.

Lowe on Monday entered a plea agreement in which he admitted fault for conspiring to inflate the price of MoviePass’ stock by lying about the profitability and sustainability of the $9.95-per-month unlimited plan in exchange for the dismissal of securities and wire fraud charges. He faces a maximum of five years in prison, with the expectation that he’ll be sentenced to less for assisting with ongoing investigation and cases, plus a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the amount he made off of the alleged scheme.

Lazard CEO Orszag Says Junior Bankers Seek Long Hours of Interesting Work

The high-profile business of stitching together deals on Wall Street offers exciting opportunities that make the effort feel worthwhile, Orszag said in a Sept. 6 interview with David Rubenstein for an upcoming episode of “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations.” He spoke in a response to a question about why junior bankers put up with the 80- to 90-hour weeks.

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“There are many, many people who would rather work whatever number of hours per week on interesting, important things rather than fewer hours on things that are not that interesting,” he said. “And that’s what we’re looking for. That’s the trade-off.”