SEC v. Stock Purse Trading LLC; Liston Associates, Inc.; and Carole A. Liston, No. LR-26379, Southern District of Florida (Aug. 20, 2025) — Press Release

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26379 / Aug. 21, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Stock Purse Trading LLC, Liston Associates, Inc., and Carole A. Liston, No. 25-civ-81026 (S.D. Fla. filed Aug. 20, 2025) SEC Charges Florida-based Companies Stock Purse Trading and Liston Associates and their Owner with Operating $5.7 Million Offering Fraud On August 20, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged South Florida entities Stock Purse Trading LLC and Liston Associates, Inc. (together, “SPT”) and their founder, sole owner, and CEO Carole A. Liston of Yonkers, New York, with conducting a fraudulent securities offering that raised at least $5.7 million from 200 investors nationwide. According to the SEC’s complaint, from August 2020 through July 2024, Defendants promised to pay investors exorbitant monthly returns based on Liston’s purported stock trading strategy and expertise. The complaint alleges that Liston touted her purported investment experience and success in in trading for her own accounts, her expertise in investing in options, and proprietary trading algorithm for short selling stocks. Liston told investors that SPT would pool investor funds to achieve better returns and represented to investors the safety and security of her investment trading strategy. Liston promised SPT investors returns ranging from 5% to 20% monthly, or in some cases, a 100% return within 30 to 60 days. In reality, Liston only used a small portion of investor funds to purchase and trade securities and, when she did, her trading produced significant losses. Liston misappropriated at least $450,000 of investor funds for her personal benefit and used at least $3.9 million in investor funds to make Ponzi-like distributions to SPT investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, charges SPT and Liston with violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and charges Liston with violations of Sections 206(1) and (2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. The complaint seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest on a joint-and-several basis, and civil penalties. Without admitting or denying the allegations, SPT and Liston agreed to partially settle the SEC’s charges by consenting to be permanently enjoined from future violations of the charged provisions, with the amount of monetary remedies to be determined by the court at a later date, upon motion of the SEC. The partial settlements are subject to court approval. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Linda S. Schmidt and supervised by Sean M. O’Neill and Glenn Gordon with the assistance of Fernando Torres, all of the SEC’s Miami Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be led by Pascale Guerrier and supervised by Teresa J. Verges, also of the Miami Regional Office.

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26379 / Aug. 21, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Stock Purse Trading LLC, Liston Associates, Inc., and Carole A. Liston, No. 25-civ-81026 (S.D. Fla. filed Aug. 20, 2025) SEC Charges Florida-based Companies Stock Purse Trading and Liston Associates and their Owner with Operating $5.7 Million Offering Fraud On August 20, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged South Florida entities Stock Purse Trading LLC and Liston Associates, Inc. (together, “SPT”) and their founder, sole owner, and CEO Carole A. Liston of Yonkers, New York, with conducting a fraudulent securities offering that raised at least $5.7 million from 200 investors nationwide. According to the SEC’s complaint, from August 2020 through July 2024, Defendants promised to pay investors exorbitant monthly returns based on Liston’s purported stock trading strategy and expertise. The complaint alleges that Liston touted her purported investment experience and success in in trading for her own accounts, her expertise in investing in options, and proprietary trading algorithm for short selling stocks. Liston told investors that SPT would pool investor funds to achieve better returns and represented to investors the safety and security of her investment trading strategy. Liston promised SPT investors returns ranging from 5% to 20% monthly, or in some cases, a 100% return within 30 to 60 days. In reality, Liston only used a small portion of investor funds to purchase and trade securities and, when she did, her trading produced significant losses. Liston misappropriated at least $450,000 of investor funds for her personal benefit and used at least $3.9 million in investor funds to make Ponzi-like distributions to SPT investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, charges SPT and Liston with violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and charges Liston with violations of Sections 206(1) and (2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. The complaint seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest on a joint-and-several basis, and civil penalties. Without admitting or denying the allegations, SPT and Liston agreed to partially settle the SEC’s charges by consenting to be permanently enjoined from future violations of the charged provisions, with the amount of monetary remedies to be determined by the court at a later date, upon motion of the SEC. The partial settlements are subject to court approval. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Linda S. Schmidt and supervised by Sean M. O’Neill and Glenn Gordon with the assistance of Fernando Torres, all of the SEC’s Miami Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be led by Pascale Guerrier and supervised by Teresa J. Verges, also of the Miami Regional Office.