Connecticut Banking Commissioner, Jorge Perez, ordered two Connecticut-based stock market research companies to pay investors $843,000 for misleading them and misusing investments, according to an order by the Banking Commissioner.

Perez issued an Order to Cease and Desist, and Order to Make Restitution, and a Notice of Intent to Fine and Notice of Right to Hearing against the LLCs, Valuex Research (Research) and Valuex Fintech (Fintech), as well as two individuals associated with both companies, Ulrika and Peter Johansson. Ulrika and Peter co-founded Research. Ulrika is also one of the co-founders of Fintech and its CEO, while Peter is the principal, agent and manager of Fintech, according to the order by the Banking Commissioner.

Between 2017 and 2021, Research raised $471,000 from 37 investors in the United States and Sweden, including at least one resident of Connecticut, according to the order by the Banking Commissioner.

Then, in 2022—one year after Fintech was established—Ulrika and Peter raised around $372,00 from multiple investors directly and through Fintech. The majority of the investors live in the U.S. and Sweden, and there are at least two Connecticut residents in that group, according to the Cease and Desist letter.  

By August 2023, Research raised approximately $500,000 from 38 investors, according to a testimony that Ulrika gave in court proceedings. 

These investors thought that they were paying for research and developing patents, but instead the money they gave was spent on unrelated expenses, the Banking Commissioner alleges in the Cease and Desist letter. 

“The Division’s review of Respondents’ bank accounts reveal that Ulrika and/or Peter consistently used a portion of investor monies for personal expenses, including but not limited to, rent payments, spa and salon services, grocery store bills, expenses at plastic surgeon’s office, ATM withdrawals, and purchases at department and jewelry stores. In addition, the Division’s investigation revealed that prior to several instances of new solicitations of investor funds, Ulrika and Peter had low bank account balances,” the letter states. 

Ulrika and Peter’s last known residency was the same location as Fintech and Research’s mailing location—which is different than their business address. The mailing address is a two-bedroom residential condo in Greenwich, Connecticut. 

“Moreover, the Division’s review revealed that approximately fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) was transferred from a bank account holding Fintech investor money to a personal account belonging to Peter, and that this money was used for Peter’s personal expenses.”

One of those investors, a Connecticut resident, filed for involuntary bankruptcy against Research in 2023. Although that case was dismissed, it led to another bout of legal trouble for the Johanssons.

“Shortly after the Court dismissed the involuntary bankruptcy, Ulrika represented to investors in Sweden that Research would file a motion for an award of damages,” the letter states. “Ulrika led Swedish investors to believe that the court could award millions of dollars in damages and that such sums could be used to repay Swedish investors. Ulrika provided at least one investor in Sweden with a letter in November 2023 from her attorney in support of this claim. In actuality, Research filed a motion for damages seeking approximately two hundred forty-three thousand dollars ($243,000), representing attorney’s fees and costs.”

This is not the only incident where the Johanssons were accused of misleading investors. 

The Johanssons are accused of violating antifraud provisions in the Connecticut Uniform Securities Act by allegedly misrepresenting how investment proceeds would be applied, mixing investor funds with their own and using investor monies to cover personal expenses, misleading investors to believe that Oppenheimer and Co. was Research’s investment banker, and failing to disclose multiple financial judgments against the Respondents, according to the Department of Banking. 

On top of that, Ulrika and Peter allegedly sold unregistered pooled investments in Fintech to multiple investors in the U.S. and Finland in violation of the Connecticut Uniform Securities Act. 

Now Ulrika and Peter to pay back its investors, a combined total of $843,000 plus interest. On top of that, they will need to provide a record of every one of Fintech and Research’s investors, with their names, addresses and how much money they paid, within the next month.

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to restate the source of the reported information.

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