SEC v. Sky Group, et al. (ponzi schemes, 2021)

Settled

✓ Checked against the primary document on October 4, 2026. The library's summary, tags and figures for this record were compared with the regulator's own document by an AI model (Claude) following written instructions, with sampled and disputed records read a second time. No lawyer has reviewed them. A checked record can still contain errors, and checked does not mean endorsed. See how we check records or report a correction.

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In September 2021 the SEC charged Sky Group USA and CEO Efrain Betancourt Jr. over an alleged $66 million promissory-note scheme. A Commission order states that a final judgment by consent was entered against Betancourt on June 28, 2022, enjoining him under the registration and antifraud provisions.

The record

What was ordered

Civil penalty

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Disgorgement

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Prejudgment interest

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Total relief

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Alleged gain

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A dash means the release did not state a figure we could extract, not that the figure is zero. Penalty and disgorgement are stored separately so aggregates across the library do not double-count the same dollars.

What is alleged to have happened

The SEC announced the complaint on September 29, 2021 (LR-25234) in the Southern District of Florida. It alleges false claims that money would fund only payday loans and promised returns up to 120%. Betancourt's ex-wife and EEB Capital Group are relief defendants.

This library tags the matter as ponzi schemes because the document describes it as a scheme paying earlier investors with later investors' money. The tagging is ours, not the regulator's: agencies charge statutory provisions, not technique names.

Outcome: the Commission's July 1, 2022 order (File No. 3-20924) states that on June 28, 2022 the Southern District of Florida entered a final judgment by consent against Betancourt, permanently enjoining him from violating Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a) of the Securities Act and Sections 10(b) and 15(a)(1) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5. The order does not give any disgorgement or penalty. The outcomes for Sky Group USA, the relief defendants and any other defendant were not checked, so this covers Betancourt only.

What technique is this, and how does it work?

This action is tagged with one technique in our taxonomy. The tagging is ours: regulators charge statutory provisions, not technique names, so the mapping is an editorial judgement described in our editorial policy.

• Ponzi schemes — see how it works, what statute it engages, and every other action tagged the same way.

Timeline

1. 2021-09-29 Litigation release published
2. 2022-06-28 Final judgment by consent entered against Betancourt (S.D. Fla.), as described in the Commission order of July 1, 2022

Primary documents

Everything on this page derives from the documents below. Where our summary and the primary document disagree, the primary document is right.

• SEC litigation release
• SEC Order, Exchange Act Release 95194 (July 1, 2022)

The linked release is a work of the United States government and is not subject to copyright. Our summary and narrative above are our own writing.

Related actions

Other actions in the library sharing at least one technique tag with this one.

Record added September 10, 2026. submit a correction.