SEC revokes registration of Togachat Academy

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has canceled the corporate registration of Togacahat Academy Philippines Inc. for allegedly operating an unauthorized investment program which the corporate regulator found to resemble a Ponzi scheme.

Dated January 23, the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD) issued the order of revocation after it found Togachat to have engaged in investment-solicitation activities without the necessary license.

According to the SEC, Togachat entices the public to avail of a package of Toga Credits which may then be used to buy shares in Toga Limited upon its supposed listing on Nasdaq.

Seven packages worth ranging from $100 to $100,000 are exchanged for 200 to 500,000 Toga Credits, with investors given the option to avail under the peso equivalent.

"The company's activities also constituted serious misrepresentation as to what it can do to the great prejudice or damage to the general public, a ground for the revocation of a corporation's certificate or registration," said the SEC.

The corporate regulator also said the agents of Togachat claim that stocks are traded on Toga Exchange, an internal platform of Toga Limited.

"This scheme falls within the definition of securities, particularly investment contracts," it said, noting that "no application for the registration of securities has been filed."

"More so, the act of respondent Togachat in allowing its members to discuss, orient and make the public familiar with its schemes and inviting them to join the company through its Facebook account posts constitutes public offering," added the SEC. —Jon Viktor Cabuenas/KG, GMA News