President Donald Trump retweeted Jacob Wohl — the 19-year-old hedge fund manager whose work has drawn the attention of securities regulators — after he credited the commander-in-chief on Wednesday for the market's performance.
Trump retweeted Wohl on other occasions this summer.
Who Is He?
Wohl started Wohl Capital Investment Group when he was 17, according to his Medium page. He's now CEO and managing partner at Montgomery Assets, an asset management and proprietary trading firm, according to the website.
“Jacob Wohl’s fundamental bet with Montgomery Assets is that as the current titans of the hedge fund industry begin [to] retire, the capital currently managed by them will trickle down to newer, innovative start-up hedge funds," the website said.
SEC Drops Investigation
Wohl Capital Investment Group was investigated by the SEC, according to a letter from the regulatory agency Wohl provided to Benzinga.
The investigation lasted more than a year and “included subpoenas and testimony regarding myself, my associates and all of my companies,” Wohl said.
The SEC has concluded an investigation and does not intend to recommend an enforcement action against the company, the document said.
The July 25 letter is signed by Victoria Levin, an assistant regional director in the SEC’s enforcement division. It states that the notice “must in no way be construed as indicating that the party has been exonerated or that no action may ultimately result from the staff’s investigation.”
“I know very well that I have never done anything illegal or immoral,” Wohl said in an email.
The SEC declined comment on the letter Wednesday.
Arizona Regulators Negotiating Consent Order
The Arizona Securities Commission accused Wohl, business partner Matthew Johnson and the companies Wohl Capital Investment Group, Nex Capital Management and Montgomery Assets of a number of instances of alleged fraudulent activities in a Sept. 27, 2016, cease and desist order.
Wohl’s funds misrepresented risk to investors and were unregistered, the order said.
The securities commission is engaging in discussions with Wohl regarding a proposed consent order “and believe that they will be able to resolve this matter without an administrative hearing,” according to an Aug. 4 order filed in the Arizona case.
The order indefinitely continues the hearing pending the regulators’ approval or rejection of the proposed consent order that’s being negotiated.
Wohl denied wrongdoing in a statement to Benzinga earlier this summer.
“All of the allegations made by the Arizona Corporation Commission are based on false statements made by the disgruntled former investor to the commission and are not supported by any of the documentary evidence in the case,” Wohl said. “The investor was a well-heeled, accredited investor and was provided with and signed all of the necessary risk disclosures.”
Wohl and his company Nex Capital were banned for life March 2 by the National Futures Association for failure to cooperate with the organization, which is the derivatives industry’s self-regulatory body.
'Hate Mail Doesn't Bother Me'
Wohl's tweet to Trump Wednesday has received more than 5,400 retweets and nearly 19,000 likes at time of writing.
Wohl brushed off backlash from his social media link to the White House.
The more than 9,000 responses to Wednesday’s tweet include messages such as “You are delusional … his supporters may well believe that, but then again they’d believe anything he says…” and "Are you a bot?"
“Hate mail doesn’t bother me,” Wohl said. “I get a kick out of it. It means I’m doing something right. I rarely respond, but when I do, I only respond with GIFs.”
Jason Shubnell contributed to this report.
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