THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned the public against Technovanti Neteligence, Inc., saying the company has no license to solicit investments or other securities.
“In response to reports and inquiries received by the commission regarding the activities of Technovanti Neteligence, Inc. (Technovanti), the Commission wishes to inform the public that Technovanti is not authorized to solicit, accept or take investments/placements from the public nor to issue investment contracts and other forms of securities defined under Section 3 of the Securities Regulation Code (SRC),” SEC said in an advisory published on its website on Nov. 25.
SEC said the company has no secondary license from the commission “to solicit investments or other securities from the public for whatever purpose.”
It said Technovanti has claimed that it is “100% legitimate” and has “complied with all the legalities.”
“But it must be noted that acquiring a primary registration with the commission is not a license or authority to solicit investment from the public because it only grants juridical personality to the corporation but does not authorize it to issue, sell, or offer securities for sale nor to undertake investment activities without acquiring a prior registration and/or secondary license approved by the Commission,” SEC explained.
SEC said that individuals who act as salesmen, brokers, dealers or agents of Technovanti “in selling or convincing people to invest” in its investment scheme, including solicitations and recruitment through the internet may also be held criminally liable and penalized with a maximum fine of P5 million or penalty of 21 years of imprisonment or both.
“Also, those who invite or recruit others to join or invest in such venture or offer investment contracts or securities to the public may incur criminally liability, or otherwise be sanctioned or penalized accordingly,” it added.
SEC said the identities of individuals involved will be forwarded to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) “so that the appropriate penalties and/or taxes be correspondingly assessed.” — Arjay L. Balinbin
