The co -founder of the aspiration and member of the Board defrauded investors of $ 145 million, prosecutors say

A little over four years ago, the aspiration for the beginning of Fintech friendly with the weather was on the edge of a public list of $ 2 billion. Now, one of the members of the Startup Board declared himself guilty of fraud to the cable and one of the co -founders has been arrested for allegedly conspiring to defraud the investors, according to a federal criminal complaint filed by the Office of the United States Prosecutor of the Central District of California.

Fintech startup has been under Federal Scrutiny For years for questionable practices of financial and carbon accounting. But the new complaint sheds a light on a series of loans that were obtained using supposedly fraudulent tactics.

The co -founder of the aspiration Joseph Sanberg was arrested Monday for allegedly conspiring to defraud two different funds of $ 145 million. Also the same day, Ibrahim Alhusseini, former member of the company’s independent Board, declared himself guilty of cable fraud for counterfeit documents to help Sanberg ensure loans, according to federal prosecutors.

If he is convicted, Sanberg faces up to 20 years in prison. Alhusseini faces the same maximum penalty, although it is cooperating with prosecutors, according to the Office of the United States Prosecutor of the Central District of California.

The startup attracted a long list of famous investors from the years, including actors Orlando Bloom, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert Downey Jr., Drake musician and Basketball coach Doc Rivers. The company hoped to make public through SPAC in 2021, but the The agreement fell in 2023.

Sanberg and Alhusseini are accused of defrauding two different investors. In 2020, Sanberg was negotiating terms for a loan of $ 55 million with an unnamed investor fund. He averaged 10.3 million actions of his aspiration actions as a guarantee; The investor fund demanded that Sanberg found a third to accept buying shares in a secondary sale if the fund wanted to leave.

Alhusseini was the third supposed, according to prosecutors. Sanberg allegedly convinced him in January 2020 to sign a sale option in the shares, which would force Alhusseini to buy if the unidentified fund would like to sell.

But Alhusseini did not have $ 55 million to pay the fund if he exercised the option, federal prosecutors say. Sanberg and Alhusseini allegedly worked with a graphic designer in Lebanon to make fun of a false brokerage and bank extracts to inflate Alhusseini assets at $ 80 million to $ 200 million.

With the sales option, the Fund lent Sanberg $ 55 million. Alhusseini received $ 6 million from the loan as a premium payment per reimbursement guarantee in case the aspiration has been submitted.

In November 2021, Sanberg allegedly refinanced the loan with a second Fund of Sin Name. This time, the loan was $ 145 million.

Once again, Alhusseini allegedly agreed for a sales option, this time for $ 65 million in case the 10.3 million shares cease to use. And like the previous loan, Sanberg and Alhusseini allegedly showed that the second background falsified documents that inflated Alhusseini’s assets. This time, Alhusseini received $ 6.3 million as premium payment.

In total, Alhusseini received $ 12.3 million from the scheme, according to his guilt.

A year later, Sanberg breached the loan of $ 145 million. Then, in the spring of 2023, he did not do it again. The fund that provided the loan exercised its sale option with Alhusseini, who has not bought the shares. The fund lost at least $ 145 million, according to the United States prosecutor’s office.