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Major investor in BB&T Financial Center faces fraud, money-laundering allegations

Major investor in BB&T Financial Center faces fraud, money-laundering allegations

The Atlanta businessman who last year paired up with a Charlotte investor to purchase the BB&T headquarters building in downtown Winston-Salem is being investigated on money-laundering and fraud charges.

Investigators are seeking to seize various assets related to Tyson Rhame and his company, Sterling Currency Group, including his interest in GVest Capital and Trinvest, the two investment vehicles that Rhame and partner Ray Gee used to purchase BB&T Financial Center in December.

Among the other assets prosecutors want to seize are five high-end residences around Atlanta and Panama City, Fla., three airplanes, two Mercedes-Benz cars and an Audi.

In a civil forfeiture complaint filed in federal court in Georgia last week, the U.S. attorney claims that these assets were proceeds from unlawful activities by Sterling Currency Group and its leaders.

Investigators claim the company, which acts as a buyer and seller of the Iraqi dinar, has been defrauding investors by spreading false information about buying the Iraqi currency as an investment.

The FBI has been investigating schemes involving the purchase of Iraqi dinar, saying that since the war in Iraq, "various promoters have claimed that the Iraqi dinar will undergo a 'revaluation,' meaning that dinar holders would make enormous profits."

That revaluation has not occurred, and many believe it will never occur, the court filing indicates.

Revenue for the company swelled from $26 million in 2010 to $245 million in 2011, and it topped $100 million in 2012 and 2013, according to the filing. Through the first nine months of 2014, the company saw $85 million in revenue.

In response to a request for comment, an attorney representing Rhame offered a written statement that also appears on Sterling Currency Group's website.

The statement says that Sterling Currency Group was "completely surprised by the recent federal complaint and strongly denies any allegations of wrong doing."

The company notes it has "spent millions of dollars and logged thousands of hours" to ensure it complies with state and federal laws.

"Despite the statements in the civil complaint, every single business related to the owners of Sterling Currency Group is legitimate and is compliant with all state and federal laws," the statement reads.

It was in December 2014 that Rhame and Gee, the head of Pineville-based real estate investment firm Gvest Capital, announced that they had purchased the BB&T headquarters building for $60 million. Gee is not named in the Sterling Currency Group accusations and does not appear to be connected to that business.

In a statement announcing the deal, Rhame called the purchase "a generational investment for my family office," saying that "being part of BB&T and Winston-Salem is a winning combination."

The purchase of the 20-story office tower at 200 W. Second St. raised eyebrows, as it last sold for $34 million just three years earlier. A deed for the building reflected an actual sale price of only $43.25 million.

Gee said in a statement that "the acquisition was a complex legal and financial transaction" when asked about the apparent disparity in January.

"Our stake in the deal is $60 million and involved other parties," Gee said. "The deal structure and names of the parties is proprietary and under confidentiality clauses."

Gee and Rhame said at the time of the purchase that they planned to sell stakes in the building to investors looking for "a 1031 exchange transaction," which is a transaction that lets investors delay capital gains taxes by investing in another, similar property soon after they make those gains.

Reg Hamel, an attorney representing Gee, told the Triad Business Journal that Gee was not involved in Sterling Currency Group or Trinvest, and that Rhame was not involved in Gvest Capital. He also said there has not been any legal action against Gvest, nor did he expect there to be any.

"So far as we know, it won't in any way affect the short-term or long-term operation" of BB&T Financial Center, Hamel said.

Hamel said Gee and Gvest are in compliance with any and all federal or state requirements, and intend to cooperate with any investigation.

 

original source: http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2015/06/15/major-investor-in-bb-t-financial-center-faces.html

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