A California precious metals company has been charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for fraudulent practices after it was discovered they were marking up products by massive amounts, the SEC announced yesterday.
For months, we have been warning about such practices. Unfortunately, these types of huge markups are exceedingly common among “Big Gold” companies, even those recommended by popular conservative personalities.
According to their press release [Emphasis added]:
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against El Segundo, California-based Red Rock Secured LLC, its CEO, Sean Kelly, and two of its former Senior Account Executives, Anthony Spencer and Jeffrey Ward, in connection with a fraudulent scheme that involved convincing hundreds of investors to sell securities in their retirement accounts to buy gold and silver coins at prices that included markups far greater than the defendants had promised.
According to the SEC’s complaint, since at least 2017, the defendants repeatedly solicited investors through false and misleading statements, telling them to “protect” their retirement savings by selling securities held in their federal employee Thrift Savings Plan accounts, 401(k) plans, and Individual Retirement Accounts to invest in gold or silver coins at only a 1 to 5 percent markup. In reality, Red Rock charged as much as 130 percent in markups, which allowed them to pocket more than $30 million of the more than $50 million they received from investors.
If the allegations are true, this represents one of the many scams we have been warning about. Our two precious metals partners do not engage in these practices, which is one of the reasons we selected them in the first place. We benefit when you purchase from our partners, Our Gold Guy and Genesis Gold Group, who we selected because they operate with integrity.
However, other precious metals companies pay far greater commissions to the conservative news outlets and show hosts recommending them. These companies, similar to Red Rock Secured, charge far too much which is how they’re able to pay massive commissions to their affiliates. We cannot in good conscience work with such companies.
Those who choose to protect their life’s savings can work with our mid-sized partner, Genesis, or our family-owned partner, Our Gold Guy, knowing that neither engages in the types of practices that are rampant in the “Big Gold” industry. What Red Rock Secured is charged with doing to their customers is shockingly common in the precious metals arena. Don’t fall for scams like “$10,000 in ‘free’ silver” because if they have enough room in their markups to be able to give away massive amounts of silver for “free,” how much are they really overcharging customers?
(Note: The information provided us or any related communications is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice. We do not provide personalized investment, financial, or legal advice.)
