Raffensperger announces settlement against German company GSB Group

ATLANTA, Ga. (WSAV)— In January 2024, Georgia joined other state regulators in filing an enforcement action against GSB Group and related entities to stop selling allegedly illegal investment products.

Now, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and the Securities Division of the Secretary of State’s (SDSS) office announced a settlement against GSB Gold Standard Corporation AG, a German company purportedly operating in the financial and banking technology industry. They said that this settlement will ensure that Georgians will receive a return of all investments deposited with GSB Group or GSB Partners.

“If you live in Georgia, and you purchased any product or service from GSB Group,” said Assistant Commissioner of Securities Noula Zaharis, “please reach out to us as soon as possible. We can help you begin preparing for the claims process.”

They said that communications with the Georgia Secretary of State’s Securities Division are protected and deemed confidential as a matter of law.

The state said that Georgia was a core member of the working group that investigated this GSB Group and took part in the action in October 2023 that looked into the actions taken and investments offered by GSB Group. The settlement named Josip Heit, the alleged owner and Chairman, and other entities collectively known as GSB Group.

Today, the state announces the execution of a “term sheet” for the settlement. The resolution was driven, in part, by the opportunity to provide significant financial relief to clients of GS Partners and other members of GSB Group.

Georgians and residents of other participating jurisdictions who deposited principal with the respondents will be eligible to receive the value of their deposits, less the value of any withdrawals, the state said.

They also said that the investigation focused on the alleged sale of Elemental and Success Series Certificates, where “purchasers were allegedly incentivized through gamification to continue to add more and more principal to their certificates to unlock variously passive income features, such as the payment of weekly or monthly passive income.”

The settlement applies to all products and services sold by the respondents, including G999 token, a digital asset deployed on a proprietary blockchain tied to physical gold; XLT Vouchers, a digital asset purportedly representing ownership interests in a skyscraper; the “staking pool in the metaverse” which was known as Lydian World and Elemental and Success Series Certificates, as long as the investments were purchased from GSB Group or Partners.

“As our securities markets rapidly evolve and many legitimate firms offer cutting-edge investments,” said Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, “there’s also a growing number of unscrupulous entities who are preying on unwitting Georgians. Sellers of allegedly illegal securities are using copycat tactics to deceive the public. They’re on notice.”

“This settlement should effectively make many, many Georgians whole,” added Raffensperger.

The state said that Secretary Raffensperger strongly encourages Georgians who deposited fiat currency or digital assets with the respondents to begin preparations by contacting the Securities Division at registrations@sos.ga.gov.