Slatkin to Halt Advisory Role in Investments

Bankrupt money manager Reed Slatkin agreed to be barred from investment management as part of ongoing settlement negotiations with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the agency said Thursday.

Slatkin consented to the order barring him from associating with any investment advisor without admitting or denying guilt, the agency said. Slatkin attorney Brian Sun said the agreement was “part of our ongoing effort to try to resolve this.”

The SEC accused Slatkin of running a Ponzi scheme shortly after he filed for bankruptcy in May 2001. Later that month, Slatkin signed a consent decree with the SEC agreeing not to violate securities laws in the future.

Slatkin still may face SEC fines and be ordered to pay back money he took from investors. He also is under criminal investigation.

A bankruptcy trustee said last month that Slatkin operated a Ponzi scheme, in which new investors’ money is used to pay bogus returns to old investors, since 1986.

The trustee said Slatkin took in $593 million from more than 800 people and still owed investors $255 million.

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Liz Pulliam Weston