SEC v. Linh Thuy Le; and Trong Hoang Luu, No. LR-26421, Central District of California (Nov. 19, 2025) — Press Release

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26421 / November 19, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Linh Thuy Le and Trong Hoang Luu, Case No. 8:25-cv-02324 (C.D. Cal., filed Oct. 15, 2025) SEC Charges Couple in Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi-Like Scheme On October 15, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil action against married couple Linh Thuy Le and Trong Hoang Luu for allegedly conducting an unregistered offering and making Ponzi-like payments through their company Inventis Ventures, LLC. According to the complaint, between March 2022 and November 2023, Le and Luu raised at least $26.6 million from at least 1,400 people primarily in California and Illinois. The SEC’s Complaint alleges that Le guaranteed investors returns of 15% per month, with a return of principal after one year, based on a minimum $5,000 investment in Inventis Ventures, LLC. As alleged by the complaint, Le told investors that Inventis would use their funds to invest in different “emerging projects” in its “investment portfolio,” giving investors varying descriptions of the use of funds, ranging from “real estate” to claims of access to an unnamed bank that provided 40% returns. The complaint further alleges that all these statements were false: rather than use investor money to engage in legitimate business activity, Le and Luu misappropriated the funds, spending investor monies for their personal benefit, paying referral fees, and making Ponzi-like distribution payments to earlier investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in the Central District of California, charges Le with violating the registration and antifraud provisions of Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The complaint charges Luu with violating Sections 17(a)(1) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rules 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions against future violations of the securities laws against Le and Luu, conduct-based injunctions against Le, disgorgement with prejudgment interest against Le and Luu, and civil penalties against Le and Luu. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California criminally charged Le and Luu in a parallel action. The SEC investigation was conducted by Tamar Braz and supervised by Marc Blau, all of the SEC’s Los Angeles Regional Office. The litigation will be led by Daniel Blau, also of the Los Angeles Regional Office. The SEC acknowledges the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26421 / November 19, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Linh Thuy Le and Trong Hoang Luu, Case No. 8:25-cv-02324 (C.D. Cal., filed Oct. 15, 2025) SEC Charges Couple in Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi-Like Scheme On October 15, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil action against married couple Linh Thuy Le and Trong Hoang Luu for allegedly conducting an unregistered offering and making Ponzi-like payments through their company Inventis Ventures, LLC. According to the complaint, between March 2022 and November 2023, Le and Luu raised at least $26.6 million from at least 1,400 people primarily in California and Illinois. The SEC’s Complaint alleges that Le guaranteed investors returns of 15% per month, with a return of principal after one year, based on a minimum $5,000 investment in Inventis Ventures, LLC. As alleged by the complaint, Le told investors that Inventis would use their funds to invest in different “emerging projects” in its “investment portfolio,” giving investors varying descriptions of the use of funds, ranging from “real estate” to claims of access to an unnamed bank that provided 40% returns. The complaint further alleges that all these statements were false: rather than use investor money to engage in legitimate business activity, Le and Luu misappropriated the funds, spending investor monies for their personal benefit, paying referral fees, and making Ponzi-like distribution payments to earlier investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in the Central District of California, charges Le with violating the registration and antifraud provisions of Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The complaint charges Luu with violating Sections 17(a)(1) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rules 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions against future violations of the securities laws against Le and Luu, conduct-based injunctions against Le, disgorgement with prejudgment interest against Le and Luu, and civil penalties against Le and Luu. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California criminally charged Le and Luu in a parallel action. The SEC investigation was conducted by Tamar Braz and supervised by Marc Blau, all of the SEC’s Los Angeles Regional Office. The litigation will be led by Daniel Blau, also of the Los Angeles Regional Office. The SEC acknowledges the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.