SEC v. Zachary J. Horwitz, et al. (ponzi schemes, 2021)

Judgment entered

✓ 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.

Report an error in this record (sec-zachary-j-horwitz-et-al-ponzi-schemes-2021) by email

In April 2021 the SEC charged Zachary Horwitz over an alleged Ponzi scheme that raised more than US$690 million by claiming film-rights deals with Netflix and HBO. On 14 February 2024 the Central District of California entered a final judgment with US$62,847,901.05 in disgorgement and US$11,375,011.28 in interest, deemed satisfied by a criminal restitution order.

The record

What was ordered

Civil penalty

—

Disgorgement

$62.8m

Prejudgment interest

$11.4m

Total relief

$74.2m

Alleged gain

—

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 Securities and Exchange Commission announced this matter on April 8, 2021 as release LR-25067. The respondents named are Zachary J. Horwitz, et al. (1 individual, 0 entities).

This library tags the matter as ponzi schemes, based on the conduct the regulator describes. Each tag links to a page explaining how that technique works, what statute it engages, and what penalties comparable actions have attracted. The tagging is ours, not the regulator's: agencies charge statutory provisions, not technique names.

The release references a parallel criminal proceeding. Where a criminal case exists, the civil and criminal outcomes are recorded separately, because they resolve on different standards of proof.

For the regulator's own account of the facts, read the primary document linked above. This page deliberately summarises the structured record rather than reproducing the release.

Outcome. SEC release LR-25973 says that on 14 February 2024 the court entered a final judgment against Horwitz, enjoining him from violating Section 17(a), Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5, and ordering disgorgement of US$62,847,901.05 and prejudgment interest of US$11,375,011.28. Both amounts are deemed satisfied by the restitution order in United States v. Horwitz, which requires him to pay US$230,361,884 to victims. The release presents the Ponzi characterization as the SEC's allegation.

The release does not say whether Horwitz consented, gives no civil penalty and reports no prison sentence. Other defendants named as co-defendants or relief defendants were not checked.

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. 2021-04-08 Litigation release published
2. 2024-02-14 Final judgment entered (SEC LR-25973, published 11 April 2024)

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 litigation release LR-25973 (final judgment)

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.

Same matter

The library links these 2 records because they appear to concern one matter: the same lead defendant, an overlapping technique tag and close filing dates, or a shared court docket or a release that cites the other. Records are listed by date filed.

This grouping is the library's, made by matching names, techniques, dates and citations when the site is built. It is not the regulator's or a court's determination that the records are one case, and it errs towards missing a link rather than making a false one.

Related actions

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

Record added September 10, 2026. submit a correction.