U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 25826 / September 12, 2023
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Esos Rings, Inc. and Michelle Silverstein aka Michelle Silverstein Bisnoff, No. 2:23-cv-07553 (C.D. Cal., filed Sept. 12, 2023)
SEC Files Settled Fraud Charges Against Los Angeles-Based "Smart Ring" Company and Its Principal
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that Esos Rings, Inc., and its principal, Michelle Silverstein aka Michelle Silverstein Bisnoff, have agreed to settle charges that they defrauded investors by selling them Esos stock through false and misleading statements about Esos's business and by operating a Ponzi-like scheme.
According to the SEC's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, from February 2017 to June 2022, Esos and Bisnoff fraudulently raised $1.95 million from investors. The complaint alleges that Esos was purportedly in the business of manufacturing and selling smart rings, which were wearable rings that functioned as a debit card. As alleged in the complaint, Esos and Bisnoff raised money from investors through false statements, including that Esos owned the patents for the smart rings and that Esos was being acquired by Apple. The complaint also alleges that Esos and Bisnoff operated a Ponzi-like scheme by using new investor money to pay off previous investors.
Esos and Bisnoff, without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC's complaint, consented to the entry of final judgments, subject to court approval, that would permanently enjoin them from violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder and hold them jointly and severally liable to pay disgorgement of $566,483 in disgorgement and $46,836 in prejudgment interest. Bisnoff also consented to an officer-and-director bar, a $233,229 civil penalty, and a permanent injunction prohibiting her from directly or indirectly, including, but not limited to, through any entity owned or controlled by her, participating in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security in an unregistered offering, provided, however, that such injunction shall not prevent Bisnoff from purchasing or selling securities listed on a national securities exchange for her own personal account.
The SEC's investigation was conducted by staff in the SEC's Los Angeles Regional Office.