In re TONY TONTAT

 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
 Before the 
 SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 
 
 
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 
Release No. 101796 / December 3, 2024 
 
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING 
File No. 3-22336 
 
 
 
In the Matter of 
 
TONY TONTAT,  
 
Respondent. 
 
 
 
ORDER INSTITUTING CEASE-AND-
DESIST PROCEEDINGS PURSUANT TO 
SECTION 21C OF THE SECURITIES 
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, MAKING 
FINDINGS, AND IMPOSING A CEASE-
AND-DESIST ORDER 
   
 
I. 
 
 The Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) deems it appropriate that cease-
and-desist proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted pursuant to Section 21C of the Securities 
Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”), against Tony Tontat (“Tontat” or “Respondent”). 
 
II. 
 
 In anticipation of the institution of these proceedings, Respondent has submitted an Offer 
of Settlement (the “Offer”) which the Commission has determined to accept. Solely for the purpose 
of these proceedings and any other proceedings brought by or on behalf of the Commission, or to 
which the Commission is a party, and without admitting or denying the findings herein, except as 
to the Commission’s jurisdiction over him and the subject matter of these proceedings, which are 
admitted, and except as provided herein in Section V, Respondent consents to the entry of this 
Order Instituting Cease-and-Desist Proceedings Pursuant to Section 21C of the Securities 
Exchange Act of 1934, Making Findings, and Imposing a Cease-and-Desist Order (“Order”), as set 
forth below.   
 
 
 

2 
III. 
 
 On the basis of this Order and Respondent’s Offer, the Commission finds
1
 that:  
 
Summary 
 
1. This matter involves a violation of the federal securities laws by Tony Tontat, the former 
Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) of Kiromic BioPharma, Inc. (“Kiromic”). Kiromic is a Houston-
based biotherapeutics company that develops cell therapies to fight cancer. In anticipation of 
funding clinical trials for its two investigational new drug (“IND”) candidates, Kiromic raised $40 
million in a follow-on public offering in early July 2021. Two weeks before the public offering, in 
June 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) informed Kiromic that it was placing 
the company’s INDs on clinical hold—an order to delay a proposed clinical investigation. Kiromic 
omitted the June 2021 FDA clinical-hold communications from its SEC filings, including its Form 
S-1 and its final prospectus related to the July 2021 public offering, investor roadshow 
presentations, and due diligence calls. After the public offering, in mid-July 2021, Tontat reviewed 
detailed letters from the FDA outlining the basis for the clinical holds. Kiromic failed to disclose the 
FDA clinical-hold communications in its Form 10-Q filed on August 13, 2021, which rendered the 
statements therein misleading. Tontat signed and certified the Form 10-Q despite its omissions. 
 
Respondent 
 
2. Tontat, age 56, splits his residence between Florida and France. Tontat was Kiromic’s CFO 
from October 2019 to September 2021. He also served on the company’s Board of Directors from 
January 2020 to September 2021. Tontat resigned as Kiromic’s CFO on September 29, 2021. 
 
Other Relevant Entity 
 
3. Kiromic BioPharma, Inc. is a Delaware corporation formed in 2016 with its principal 
place of business in Houston, Texas. It is a clinical-stage, fully integrated biotherapeutics company 
that develops and commercializes cell therapies that focus on immuno-oncology. Kiromic’s stock 
previously traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market exchange and now trades on the OTCQB Venture 
Market under the ticker symbol “KRBP.” Kiromic is required to file periodic reports, including 
quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, with the Commission under Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act and 
related rules thereunder.  
Facts 
 
4. Kiromic develops cell therapies for treating cancer patients. In May 2021, Kiromic 
submitted IND applications to the FDA for its cancer product candidates—the ALEXIS PRO and 
ALEXIS ISO (“ALEXIS INDs”). On June 16 and 17, 2021, the FDA informed Kiromic that it had 
placed the ALEXIS INDs on clinical hold. “A clinical hold is an order issued by FDA to the [IND] 
sponsor to delay a proposed clinical investigation.” 21 C.F.R. § 312.42(a). The FDA also informed 
                                                 
1
   The findings herein are made pursuant to Respondent’s Offer of Settlement and are not binding on any 
other person or entity in this or any other proceeding.  

3 
Kiromic that it would receive a detailed letter in mid-July 2021 explaining the FDA’s basis for the 
clinical holds.  
 
5. On June 22, 2021, Kiromic held a board meeting where all participants, including Tontat, 
attended virtually. At that meeting, Kiromic’s then-Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) mentioned, 
among other things, that the ALEXIS INDs were “administratively on hold” and that the FDA 
would send Kiromic a letter in mid-July 2021 with “secondary review questions.” Tontat, as well as 
other participants at the meeting, did not leave the meeting with the understanding that the FDA had 
already placed the ALEXIS INDs on clinical hold. 
 
6. On July 2, 2021, Kiromic conducted a follow-on public offering, selling $40 million in 
common stock. However, Kiromic did not disclose the FDA clinical-hold communications in its 
June 25, 2021 Form S-1, its June 29, 2021 final prospectus, or in calls with investors, analysts, or 
roadshow presentations leading up to the public offering in which Tontat participated, including 
where he made statements and answered questions about the timing and status of the FDA’s review 
of the INDs. 
 
7. On July 13, 2021, Kiromic received the detailed FDA clinical-hold letters for the ALEXIS 
INDs that explained the FDA’s decision for issuing the June 16 and 17, 2021 clinical holds. Tontat 
received and reviewed those letters the same day. The next day, on July 14, 2021, Tontat advised 
Kiromic’s CEO and then-Chief Strategy Officer that the letters were “material information” and 
recommended that Kiromic disclose the clinical holds. On July 16, 2021, Kiromic issued a press 
release stating that the “FDA returned with comments” regarding the ALEXIS INDs but that 
Kiromic still expected to meet its third quarter 2021 clinical trials timeline. 
 
8. On August 13, 2021, Kiromic filed its Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2021, but 
did not disclose the FDA’s July 2021 clinical-hold letters or the FDA’s prior June 2021 clinical-
hold communications. Regarding the ALEXIS INDs, Kiromic’s Form 10-Q stated, “[t]hese 
product candidates are in the pre-initial new drug (“IND”) stages of the US Food and Drug 
Administration (the “FDA”) clinical trial process. We are currently going through the IND 
enabling trials process and we expect that first in human dosing in Phase I of clinical trials will 
commence in the first quarter of 2022.” Under the heading “Recent Developments” in the Form 
10-Q, Kiromic discussed the submission of the INDs to the FDA in May 2021, but omitted the 
FDA’s June 2021 clinical-hold communications and the detailed FDA clinical-hold letters of July 
13, 2021. Despite acknowledging that the FDA communications were material and warranted 
disclosure, Tontat, as Kiromic’s CFO, certified Kiromic’s Form 10-Q even though it omitted the 
FDA clinical-hold communications.  
 
Violations 
 
9. As a result of the conduct described above, Tontat caused Kiromic’s violations of Section 
13(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 13a-13 thereunder, which require reporting companies to file 
with the Commission complete and accurate quarterly reports. Tontat caused Kiromic’s violations 
of Exchange Act Rule 12b-20, which requires an issuer to include in a statement or report filed 
with the Commission such further material information as may be necessary to make the required 

4 
statements in the filing, in the light of the circumstances under which they are made, not 
misleading. 
 
10. Rule 13a-14 of the Exchange Act provides, in pertinent part, that each periodic report must 
include certifications signed by the issuer’s principal executive and principal financial officers 
which include, among other things, a representation that based on the certifier’s knowledge, the 
report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact 
necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements 
were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by the report. Tontat signed the 
certification in the Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2021 in violation of Rule 13a-14. For 
the reasons set forth above, the certification was inaccurate. 
 
Undertakings 
 
11.  Tontat shall continue to cooperate fully with the Commission with respect to this action 
and any related judicial or administrative proceeding or investigation commenced by the 
Commission or to which the Commission is a party and subject to compliance with applicable 
law. Tontat agrees that such cooperation shall include, but is not limited to: 
 
In  connection  with  this  action  and  any  related  judicial  or  administrative  proceeding  or 
investigation commenced by the Commission or to which the Commission is a party, and 
for  those  stated  purposes  only, Respondent  (i)  agrees  to  appear  and  be  interviewed  by 
Commission  staff  at  such  times  and  places,  including  remotely  if  feasible, as  the  staff 
requests upon reasonable  notice; (ii) will accept service by  mail  of  notices  or subpoenas 
issued by the Commission  for documents or testimony at depositions,  hearings, or trials, 
or  in  connection  with  any  related  investigation  by  Commission  staff;  (iii)  appoints 
Respondent’s  undersigned  attorney  as  agent  to  receive  service  of  such  notices  and 
subpoenas; (iv) with respect to such notices and subpoenas, waives the territorial limits on 
service contained  in Rule 45  of the Federal Rules  of Civil Procedure and  any applicable 
local rules,  provided  that  the party  requesting  the  testimony  reimburses  Respondent’s 
travel, lodging, and subsistence expenses at the then-prevailing U.S. Government per diem 
rates;  and  (v)  consents  to  personal  jurisdiction  over  Respondent  in  any  United  States 
District Court for purposes of enforcing any such subpoena. 
 
In determining whether to accept the Offer, the Commission has considered these 
undertakings.  
  
IV. 
 
 In view of the foregoing, the Commission deems it appropriate to impose the sanctions 
agreed to in Respondent Tontat’s Offer. 
 
 Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that: 
 

5 
 A. Pursuant to Section 21C of the Exchange Act, Respondent Tontat cease and desist 
from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of Section 13(a) of the 
Exchange Act and Rules 12b-20, 13a-13, and 13a-14 thereunder.     
 
 
B. Tontat shall pay a civil money penalty in the amount of $20,000 to the Securities 
and Exchange Commission for transfer to the general fund of the United States Treasury, subject to 
Exchange Act Section 21F(g)(3). Payments shall be made in the following installments: $5,000 
within 10 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 90 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 
180 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 240 days of entry of this Order; and remaining 
amount outstanding within 364 days of entry of this Order. Payments shall be applied first to post 
order interest, which accrues pursuant to 31 U.S.C. § 3717. Prior to making the final payment set 
forth herein, Respondent shall contact the staff of the Commission for the amount due. If 
Respondent fails to make any payment by the date agreed and/or in the amount agreed according to 
the schedule set forth above, all outstanding payments under this Order, including post-order 
interest, minus any payments made, shall become due and payable immediately at the discretion of 
the staff of the Commission without further application to the Commission.  
 
Payment must be made in one of the following ways:   
 
(1) Respondent may transmit payment electronically to the Commission, which 
will provide detailed ACH transfer/Fedwire instructions upon request;  
 
(2) Respondent may make direct payment from a bank account via Pay.gov 
through the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm; or  
 
(3) Respondent may pay by certified check, bank cashier’s check, or United 
States postal money order, made payable to the Securities and Exchange 
Commission and hand-delivered or mailed to:  
 
Enterprise Services Center 
Accounts Receivable Branch 
HQ Bldg., Room 181, AMZ-341 
6500 South MacArthur Boulevard 
Oklahoma City, OK 73169 
 
Payments by check or money order must be accompanied by a cover letter identifying 
Tontat as a Respondent in these proceedings, and the file number of these proceedings; a copy of 
the cover letter and check or money order must be sent to: B. David Fraser, Associate Director, 
Division of Enforcement, Securities and Exchange Commission, 801 Cherry Street, Suite 1900, 
Fort Worth, Texas 76102.   
 
 C. Amounts ordered to be paid as civil money penalties pursuant to this Order shall be 
treated as penalties paid to the government for all purposes, including all tax purposes. To preserve 
the deterrent effect of the civil penalty, Respondent agrees that in any Related Investor Action, he 

6 
shall not argue that he is entitled to, nor shall he benefit by, offset or reduction of any award of 
compensatory damages by the amount of any part of their payment of a civil penalty in this action 
(“Penalty Offset”). If the court in any Related Investor Action grants such a Penalty Offset, 
Respondent agrees that he shall, within 30 days after entry of a final order granting the Penalty 
Offset, notify the Commission’s counsel in this action and pay the amount of the Penalty Offset to 
the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such a payment shall not be deemed an additional civil 
penalty and shall not be deemed to change the amount of the civil penalty imposed in this 
proceeding. For purposes of this paragraph, a “Related Investor Action” means a private damages 
action brought against Respondent by or on behalf of one or more investors based on substantially 
the same facts as alleged in the Order instituted by the Commission in this proceeding. 
 
D. Respondent acknowledges that the Commission is not imposing a civil penalty in 
excess of $20,000 based in part upon his cooperation in a Commission investigation and related 
enforcement action.  If at any time following the entry of the Order, the Division of Enforcement 
(“Division”) obtains information indicating that Respondent knowingly provided materially false 
or misleading information or materials to the Commission, or in a related proceeding, the Division 
may, at its sole discretion and with prior notice to the Respondent, petition the Commission to 
reopen this matter and seek an order directing that the Respondent pay an additional civil penalty.  
Respondent may contest by way of defense in any resulting administrative proceeding whether it 
knowingly provided materially false or misleading information, but may not: (1) contest the 
findings in the Order; or (2) assert any defense to liability or remedy, including, but not limited to, 
any statute of limitations defense. 
 
V. 
It is further Ordered that, solely for purposes of exceptions to discharge set forth in Section 
523 of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 523, the findings in this Order are true and admitted by 
Respondent, and further, any debt for disgorgement, prejudgment interest, civil penalty or other 
amounts due by Respondent under this Order or any other judgment, order, consent order, decree 
or settlement agreement entered in connection with this proceeding, is a debt for the violation by 
Respondent of the federal securities laws or any regulation or order issued under such laws, as set 
forth in Section 523(a)(19) of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(19). 
 
 
 By the Commission. 
 
 
 
Vanessa A. Countryman 
Secretary 
 
 
 
 
 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

 Before the 

 SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 

 

 

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 

Release No. 101796 / December 3, 2024 

 

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING 

File No. 3-22336 

 

 

 

In the Matter of 

 

TONY TONTAT,  

 

Respondent. 

 

 

 

ORDER INSTITUTING CEASE-AND-

DESIST PROCEEDINGS PURSUANT TO 

SECTION 21C OF THE SECURITIES 

EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, MAKING 

FINDINGS, AND IMPOSING A CEASE-

AND-DESIST ORDER 

   

 

I. 

 

 The Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) deems it appropriate that cease-

and-desist proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted pursuant to Section 21C of the Securities 

Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”), against Tony Tontat (“Tontat” or “Respondent”). 

 

II. 

 

 In anticipation of the institution of these proceedings, Respondent has submitted an Offer 

of Settlement (the “Offer”) which the Commission has determined to accept. Solely for the purpose 

of these proceedings and any other proceedings brought by or on behalf of the Commission, or to 

which the Commission is a party, and without admitting or denying the findings herein, except as 

to the Commission’s jurisdiction over him and the subject matter of these proceedings, which are 

admitted, and except as provided herein in Section V, Respondent consents to the entry of this 

Order Instituting Cease-and-Desist Proceedings Pursuant to Section 21C of the Securities 

Exchange Act of 1934, Making Findings, and Imposing a Cease-and-Desist Order (“Order”), as set 

forth below.   

 

 

 



2 

III. 

 

 On the basis of this Order and Respondent’s Offer, the Commission finds1 that:  

 

Summary 

 

1. This matter involves a violation of the federal securities laws by Tony Tontat, the former 

Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) of Kiromic BioPharma, Inc. (“Kiromic”). Kiromic is a Houston-

based biotherapeutics company that develops cell therapies to fight cancer. In anticipation of 

funding clinical trials for its two investigational new drug (“IND”) candidates, Kiromic raised $40 

million in a follow-on public offering in early July 2021. Two weeks before the public offering, in 

June 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) informed Kiromic that it was placing 

the company’s INDs on clinical hold—an order to delay a proposed clinical investigation. Kiromic 

omitted the June 2021 FDA clinical-hold communications from its SEC filings, including its Form 

S-1 and its final prospectus related to the July 2021 public offering, investor roadshow 

presentations, and due diligence calls. After the public offering, in mid-July 2021, Tontat reviewed 

detailed letters from the FDA outlining the basis for the clinical holds. Kiromic failed to disclose the 

FDA clinical-hold communications in its Form 10-Q filed on August 13, 2021, which rendered the 

statements therein misleading. Tontat signed and certified the Form 10-Q despite its omissions. 

 

Respondent 

 

2. Tontat, age 56, splits his residence between Florida and France. Tontat was Kiromic’s CFO 

from October 2019 to September 2021. He also served on the company’s Board of Directors from 

January 2020 to September 2021. Tontat resigned as Kiromic’s CFO on September 29, 2021. 

 

Other Relevant Entity 

 

3. Kiromic BioPharma, Inc. is a Delaware corporation formed in 2016 with its principal 

place of business in Houston, Texas. It is a clinical-stage, fully integrated biotherapeutics company 

that develops and commercializes cell therapies that focus on immuno-oncology. Kiromic’s stock 

previously traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market exchange and now trades on the OTCQB Venture 

Market under the ticker symbol “KRBP.” Kiromic is required to file periodic reports, including 

quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, with the Commission under Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act and 

related rules thereunder.  

Facts 

 

4. Kiromic develops cell therapies for treating cancer patients. In May 2021, Kiromic 

submitted IND applications to the FDA for its cancer product candidates—the ALEXIS PRO and 

ALEXIS ISO (“ALEXIS INDs”). On June 16 and 17, 2021, the FDA informed Kiromic that it had 

placed the ALEXIS INDs on clinical hold. “A clinical hold is an order issued by FDA to the [IND] 

sponsor to delay a proposed clinical investigation.” 21 C.F.R. § 312.42(a). The FDA also informed 

                                                 
1   The findings herein are made pursuant to Respondent’s Offer of Settlement and are not binding on any 

other person or entity in this or any other proceeding.  



3 

Kiromic that it would receive a detailed letter in mid-July 2021 explaining the FDA’s basis for the 

clinical holds.  

 

5. On June 22, 2021, Kiromic held a board meeting where all participants, including Tontat, 

attended virtually. At that meeting, Kiromic’s then-Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) mentioned, 

among other things, that the ALEXIS INDs were “administratively on hold” and that the FDA 

would send Kiromic a letter in mid-July 2021 with “secondary review questions.” Tontat, as well as 

other participants at the meeting, did not leave the meeting with the understanding that the FDA had 

already placed the ALEXIS INDs on clinical hold. 

 

6. On July 2, 2021, Kiromic conducted a follow-on public offering, selling $40 million in 

common stock. However, Kiromic did not disclose the FDA clinical-hold communications in its 

June 25, 2021 Form S-1, its June 29, 2021 final prospectus, or in calls with investors, analysts, or 

roadshow presentations leading up to the public offering in which Tontat participated, including 

where he made statements and answered questions about the timing and status of the FDA’s review 

of the INDs. 

 

7. On July 13, 2021, Kiromic received the detailed FDA clinical-hold letters for the ALEXIS 

INDs that explained the FDA’s decision for issuing the June 16 and 17, 2021 clinical holds. Tontat 

received and reviewed those letters the same day. The next day, on July 14, 2021, Tontat advised 

Kiromic’s CEO and then-Chief Strategy Officer that the letters were “material information” and 

recommended that Kiromic disclose the clinical holds. On July 16, 2021, Kiromic issued a press 

release stating that the “FDA returned with comments” regarding the ALEXIS INDs but that 

Kiromic still expected to meet its third quarter 2021 clinical trials timeline. 

 

8. On August 13, 2021, Kiromic filed its Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2021, but 

did not disclose the FDA’s July 2021 clinical-hold letters or the FDA’s prior June 2021 clinical-

hold communications. Regarding the ALEXIS INDs, Kiromic’s Form 10-Q stated, “[t]hese 

product candidates are in the pre-initial new drug (“IND”) stages of the US Food and Drug 

Administration (the “FDA”) clinical trial process. We are currently going through the IND 

enabling trials process and we expect that first in human dosing in Phase I of clinical trials will 

commence in the first quarter of 2022.” Under the heading “Recent Developments” in the Form 

10-Q, Kiromic discussed the submission of the INDs to the FDA in May 2021, but omitted the 

FDA’s June 2021 clinical-hold communications and the detailed FDA clinical-hold letters of July 

13, 2021. Despite acknowledging that the FDA communications were material and warranted 

disclosure, Tontat, as Kiromic’s CFO, certified Kiromic’s Form 10-Q even though it omitted the 

FDA clinical-hold communications.  

 

Violations 

 

9. As a result of the conduct described above, Tontat caused Kiromic’s violations of Section 

13(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 13a-13 thereunder, which require reporting companies to file 

with the Commission complete and accurate quarterly reports. Tontat caused Kiromic’s violations 

of Exchange Act Rule 12b-20, which requires an issuer to include in a statement or report filed 

with the Commission such further material information as may be necessary to make the required 



4 

statements in the filing, in the light of the circumstances under which they are made, not 

misleading. 

 

10. Rule 13a-14 of the Exchange Act provides, in pertinent part, that each periodic report must 

include certifications signed by the issuer’s principal executive and principal financial officers 

which include, among other things, a representation that based on the certifier’s knowledge, the 

report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact 

necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements 

were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by the report. Tontat signed the 

certification in the Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2021 in violation of Rule 13a-14. For 

the reasons set forth above, the certification was inaccurate. 

 

Undertakings 

 

11.  Tontat shall continue to cooperate fully with the Commission with respect to this action 

and any related judicial or administrative proceeding or investigation commenced by the 

Commission or to which the Commission is a party and subject to compliance with applicable 

law. Tontat agrees that such cooperation shall include, but is not limited to: 

 

In connection with this action and any related judicial or administrative proceeding or 

investigation commenced by the Commission or to which the Commission is a party, and 

for those stated purposes only, Respondent (i) agrees to appear and be interviewed by 

Commission staff at such times and places, including remotely if feasible, as the staff 

requests upon reasonable notice; (ii) will accept service by mail of notices or subpoenas 

issued by the Commission for documents or testimony at depositions, hearings, or trials, 

or in connection with any related investigation by Commission staff; (iii) appoints 

Respondent’s undersigned attorney as agent to receive service of such notices and 

subpoenas; (iv) with respect to such notices and subpoenas, waives the territorial limits on 

service contained in Rule 45 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and any applicable 

local rules, provided that the party requesting the testimony reimburses Respondent’s 

travel, lodging, and subsistence expenses at the then-prevailing U.S. Government per diem 

rates; and (v) consents to personal jurisdiction over Respondent in any United States 

District Court for purposes of enforcing any such subpoena. 

 

In determining whether to accept the Offer, the Commission has considered these 

undertakings.  

  

IV. 

 

 In view of the foregoing, the Commission deems it appropriate to impose the sanctions 

agreed to in Respondent Tontat’s Offer. 

 

 Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that: 

 



5 

 A. Pursuant to Section 21C of the Exchange Act, Respondent Tontat cease and desist 

from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of Section 13(a) of the 

Exchange Act and Rules 12b-20, 13a-13, and 13a-14 thereunder.     

 

 

B. Tontat shall pay a civil money penalty in the amount of $20,000 to the Securities 

and Exchange Commission for transfer to the general fund of the United States Treasury, subject to 

Exchange Act Section 21F(g)(3). Payments shall be made in the following installments: $5,000 

within 10 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 90 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 

180 days of entry of this Order; $5,000 within 240 days of entry of this Order; and remaining 

amount outstanding within 364 days of entry of this Order. Payments shall be applied first to post 

order interest, which accrues pursuant to 31 U.S.C. § 3717. Prior to making the final payment set 

forth herein, Respondent shall contact the staff of the Commission for the amount due. If 

Respondent fails to make any payment by the date agreed and/or in the amount agreed according to 

the schedule set forth above, all outstanding payments under this Order, including post-order 

interest, minus any payments made, shall become due and payable immediately at the discretion of 

the staff of the Commission without further application to the Commission.  

 

Payment must be made in one of the following ways:   

 

(1) Respondent may transmit payment electronically to the Commission, which 

will provide detailed ACH transfer/Fedwire instructions upon request;  

 

(2) Respondent may make direct payment from a bank account via Pay.gov 

through the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm; or  

 

(3) Respondent may pay by certified check, bank cashier’s check, or United 

States postal money order, made payable to the Securities and Exchange 

Commission and hand-delivered or mailed to:  

 

Enterprise Services Center 

Accounts Receivable Branch 

HQ Bldg., Room 181, AMZ-341 

6500 South MacArthur Boulevard 

Oklahoma City, OK 73169 

 

Payments by check or money order must be accompanied by a cover letter identifying 

Tontat as a Respondent in these proceedings, and the file number of these proceedings; a copy of 

the cover letter and check or money order must be sent to: B. David Fraser, Associate Director, 

Division of Enforcement, Securities and Exchange Commission, 801 Cherry Street, Suite 1900, 

Fort Worth, Texas 76102.   

 

 C. Amounts ordered to be paid as civil money penalties pursuant to this Order shall be 

treated as penalties paid to the government for all purposes, including all tax purposes. To preserve 

the deterrent effect of the civil penalty, Respondent agrees that in any Related Investor Action, he 

http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm


6 

shall not argue that he is entitled to, nor shall he benefit by, offset or reduction of any award of 

compensatory damages by the amount of any part of their payment of a civil penalty in this action 

(“Penalty Offset”). If the court in any Related Investor Action grants such a Penalty Offset, 

Respondent agrees that he shall, within 30 days after entry of a final order granting the Penalty 

Offset, notify the Commission’s counsel in this action and pay the amount of the Penalty Offset to 

the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such a payment shall not be deemed an additional civil 

penalty and shall not be deemed to change the amount of the civil penalty imposed in this 

proceeding. For purposes of this paragraph, a “Related Investor Action” means a private damages 

action brought against Respondent by or on behalf of one or more investors based on substantially 

the same facts as alleged in the Order instituted by the Commission in this proceeding. 

 

D. Respondent acknowledges that the Commission is not imposing a civil penalty in 

excess of $20,000 based in part upon his cooperation in a Commission investigation and related 

enforcement action.  If at any time following the entry of the Order, the Division of Enforcement 

(“Division”) obtains information indicating that Respondent knowingly provided materially false 

or misleading information or materials to the Commission, or in a related proceeding, the Division 

may, at its sole discretion and with prior notice to the Respondent, petition the Commission to 

reopen this matter and seek an order directing that the Respondent pay an additional civil penalty.  

Respondent may contest by way of defense in any resulting administrative proceeding whether it 

knowingly provided materially false or misleading information, but may not: (1) contest the 

findings in the Order; or (2) assert any defense to liability or remedy, including, but not limited to, 

any statute of limitations defense. 

 

V. 

It is further Ordered that, solely for purposes of exceptions to discharge set forth in Section 

523 of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 523, the findings in this Order are true and admitted by 

Respondent, and further, any debt for disgorgement, prejudgment interest, civil penalty or other 

amounts due by Respondent under this Order or any other judgment, order, consent order, decree 

or settlement agreement entered in connection with this proceeding, is a debt for the violation by 

Respondent of the federal securities laws or any regulation or order issued under such laws, as set 

forth in Section 523(a)(19) of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(19). 

 

 

 By the Commission. 

 

 

 

Vanessa A. Countryman 

Secretary 

 

 

 

 

 


	UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
	IV.