Existing investors were allegedly given false assurances about the funds’ performances. In the mean time, according to the SEC, the trio charged personal expenses, including dinners, travel costs and entertainment, to Pincheira’s personal American Express card, then used investor funds to pay off the balances.
Both Mata and Kayatta formerly served as financial advisors for Ameriprise Financial, according to the SEC.
The SEC’s complaint notes that Mata has an “extensive disciplinary history,” including a checkered career as a securities dealer. His BrokerCheck record has nine Finra disclosures, including a $215,000 settlement in 2009 over investments in allegedly unsuitable bond funds that incurred approximately $1 million in losses.
In 2010, Mata’s Secured Capital Investments and Logos Wealth Advisors were hit with a Nevada cease-and-desist action involving the sale of unregistered investments. In 2011, Finra suspended Mata’s license and assessed a $10,000 fine for allegedly participating in private securities transactions and outside business activities without notifying his member firm. In 2014, the state of California suspended his license.