The U.S. SEC has charged Texas fund manager Khalid Parekh with illegally investing $18.5 million of client funds in cryptocurrencies without client consent. From August 2021 to August 2022, Parekh raised $18.5 million from 373 investors across 40 states through his sole proprietorship Fair Invest. He primarily attracted investors from the American Muslim community through broadcast shows, podcasts, and media interviews, claiming that his fund complied with Islamic law. Parekh promised investors an annual return of 4%, stating that these returns came from traditional assets such as stocks, mutual funds, commodities, and ETFs. However, the SEC's allegations indicate that he actually invested client funds into two cryptocurrency lending platforms without informing investors. During the SEC investigation, Parekh has returned client funds along with the promised 4% return. Additionally, he agreed to pay a $100,000 fine and rescind his investment advisor registration with the SEC. (DL News)

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