Bellevue real estate investment firm accused of Ponzi scheme emerges from bankruptcy
A Bellevue-based real estate investment firm that allegedly bilked investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars has emerged from bankruptcy.
On Thursday, iCap Enterprises emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy under a court-approved liquidation plan aimed at repaying investors. The firm now goes by iCap Trust, an entity solely focused on trying to repay investors.
"This case was about taking swift, decisive action," Lance Miller, iCap's chief restructuring officer, said in a news release. "From day one, our focus was to protect investor interests, uncover the truth, and forge a viable path for recovery."
iCap was founded in 2011. According to documents filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Eastern District of Washington, iCap allegedly raised about $230 million from more than 1,800 investors between 2018 and 2023 under the promise of investing in real estate projects. Instead, according to the court documents, the company used new investor money to pay old investors and creditors, and the company "did not operate as a legitimate profit-making business."
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2024/12/05/icap-bellevue-real-estate-investment-bankruptcy.html