Heartland Bank & Trust Co. Agrees to $9 Million Settlement For Allegedly Aiding and Abetting a Ponzi Scheme

Posted on March 24th, 2023 at 2:11 PM
Heartland Bank & Trust Co. Agrees to $9 Million Settlement For Allegedly Aiding and Abetting  a Ponzi Scheme

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law 

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has agreed to a $9 million settlement with Heartland Bank & Trust Co. over the bank’s alleged role in aiding and abetting a $75 million Ponzi scheme.

The $9 million settlement is expected to resolve claims against the Illinois community bank as well as claims filed separately by investors who were allegedly defrauded by the company, Todays Growth Consultant, which did business as The Income Store. The settlement agreement will classify the SEC’s enforcement suit as the principal action, which will allow Todays Growth investors to pursue remedies. The settlement likely will prompt a court order permitting investors to recover their losses “through the receivership distribution process”, according to the SEC.

The SEC initially filed suit against Todays Growth in December 2019 alleging that it had collected $75 million from at least 500 investors by falsely promising extraordinary returns. According to the SEC, investors in Todays Growth finalized, "consulting performance agreements, " with the Illinois bank that guaranteed extraordinary returns, which purportedly would be generated by websites that the bank would acquire or build for investors. The SEC filed suit just as the company was, “crumbling under its debt obligations, " and U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle Sr. froze Todays Growth’s assets and appointed a receiver. The receiver filed suit against Heartland Bank in December 2020, noting that Todays Growth had been a Heartland customer during the entire duration of the Ponzi scheme.


Eccleston Law LLC represents financial advisors and investors nationwide in securities, employment, transition, regulatory and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

Thank you for your professional assistance with this matter. You are very good at what you do.

John T.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

June 19, 2025
SEC Charges Former Real Estate CEO in $46 Million Investment Fraud Scheme

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has charged Kenneth Mattson, former CEO of LeFever Mattson, with orchestrating a $46 million investment fraud scheme that targeted approximately 200 investors, many of them retired senior citizens
from his church community in California.

June 18, 2025
Audit Firms Agree to $46 Million Settlement in GPB Capital Fraud Case

In a significant development in the GPB Capital fraud litigation, several audit firms have agreed to pay a combined $46 million to settle claims tied to their alleged involvement in the $1.8 billion scheme that impacted roughly 15,000 investors, as reported by DI Wire.

June 17, 2025
FINRA Sanctions Former Advisor for Unsuitable Variable Annuity Exchanges

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has fined and suspended former broker Thomas Vigil for making unsuitable variable annuity recommendations that resulted in customers paying higher fees.