Alberta Securities Commission sanctions Craig Michael Thompson and two firms for CAD 150 million day-trading fraud

The Alberta Securities Commission has sanctioned Craig Michael Thompson and two companies he controlled, Black Box Management Corp. and Invader Management Ltd., for securities misconduct including fraud tied to a CAD 150 million scheme marketed as stock market day trading. The panel imposed permanent market-access bans and ordered monetary sanctions after the scheme collapsed in fall 2023 and many investors suffered substantial losses. In a Statement of Agreed Facts and Admissions, the respondents admitted they raised funds from more than 1,000 investors in the U.S. and Alberta between 2020 and 2023, falsely portraying Thompson as a consistently successful day trader. Only a small portion of investor money was used for day trading, which generated a cumulative net loss of nearly USD 15 million, while most funds were misappropriated to pay other investors their purported returns. Investors received weekly emailed statements showing positive performance and growing balances, but the performance and account values were fabricated and, in reality, investor balances were effectively zero. The panel ordered approximately $8.1 million in disgorgement, an administrative penalty of $750,000 and costs of $14,000, and permanently banned Thompson from trading in or purchasing any securities while requiring him to resign any director or officer positions; all three respondents are subject to permanent market-access bans.