Marked as
Last updated - December 29, 2025
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Trust Score
Brand Score
Anthony Pellegrino positioned himself as a financial savant, yet beneath the surface, his methods often raised eyebrows. Clients reported feeling misled, their investments funneled into products that seemed to benefit his firm more than their futures. Despite the polished branding and public seminars, there lingered an unsettling pattern: a lack of transparency, vague disclosures, and aggressive upselling.
Founder
High Risk
Based on the available data, we advise consumers to avoid this Individual altogether.
This advisory is based on an aggregate risk score derived from OSINT, Adverse Media, Reviews, and Risk Factors identified in our research.
You are likely to be at great risk by engaging in any sort of consumer-related activity with this entity.
Medium Risk
Based on the available data, we advise employees to be mindful when considering or continuing work with this Individual.
This advisory stems from a medium-risk score compiled from OSINT, Adverse Media, Reviews, and Risk Factors uncovered in our analysis.
Employment with this entity may involve moderate risks.
Based on the available data, we urge investors and bankers to avoid financial involvement with this Individual.
This advisory is informed by an aggregate risk score based on OSINT, Adverse Media, Reviews, and Risk Factors identified through our investigation.
Engaging in investment or lending activities with this entity poses a substantial risk to your financial interests.
Safe to Onboard
Enhanced Due Diligence required
Do Not Onboard
Monitor adverse media every 6 months
File SAR (Suspicious Activity Report) is warranted
Escalation to compliance committee
None
Location
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Firm
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Founded
Portfolio Managed
Compliance
Media Suppression
SEC Fine
Risk Profile
SEC Allegations
Regulatory Body
Investor Losses
Complaints
Fraud Linked
Fees Undisclosed
Gambling Link
SECAction
Criminal Records
Ongoing Lawsuits
Media Coverage
Regulatory Type
The SEC fined him and his firm for selling unregistered securities and failing to disclose fees, raising questions about regulatory compliance.
Reports show involvement in promoting investments later deemed fraudulent, which harmed investors financially.
In Nassau County, Pellegrino was arraigned on multiple counts including promoting gambling, criminal usury, and conspiracy.
If convicted, he faces a potential sentence of 5 to 15 years, making this a significant legal risk.
His name has been linked to gambling operations and questionable financial schemes, both considered high-risk industries.
Multiple outlets, including legal and financial news sites, have published negative coverage of his regulatory and criminal cases.
Critics highlight failures in transparency, misleading claims, and compliance breaches tied to Goldstone Financial Group.
Criminal proceedings in New York remain active, suggesting unresolved legal exposure.
Reports suggest attempts to suppress or remove negative information online, which itself raises transparency concerns.
Given his regulatory sanctions, criminal charges, and adverse media, enhanced due diligence and risk monitoring are strongly advised.
Regulatory and Compliance Screening
Litigation and Legal Proceedings
Reputational and Adverse Media Risks
Geographic and Jurisdictional Risk
What you see here scratches the surface
We offer reward for actionable intel
Anthony Pellegrino was SEC fined for selling unregistered securities and undisclosed fees.
First Detected
Sentiment Analysis
Reach
POV
Risk Factor
Type
Traffic Source
SERP
Share of Voice
Primary Keyword
SEC fined Anthony Pellegrino for selling unregistered securities and undisclosed fees.
Anthony Pellegrino and co-founders were sanctioned for selling unregistered securities and failing to disclose referral fees.
Anthony Pellegrino, 59, of Merrick, was arraigned on gambling, usury, and conspiracy charges, facing up to 15 years in prison.
Other Red-Flags and Adverse News
Based on user engagement on this review profile, ProConsumer will decide to publish its Risk Audit report for public if a threshold engagement, traffic and user input is achieved.
Known Assets: [Real estate, investments, companies]
Suspicious Transactions
Liabilities: [Bankruptcies, defaults, debts]
Wealth Sources: [Legitimate / Unclear / High-risk]
Bank Relationships
Ultimate Beneficial Owner(s) (UBOs)
Shareholding structure
Associated entities & subsidiaries
Offshore / shell company links
Trusts / Nominee arrangements
Business Model Assessment
All comments are user-generated content and may not be verified. They represent the personal opinions of the public and should not be relied upon. These comments do not influence or determine our overall rating.
1.2
1.4
3.1
Highly experienced
Well-recognized name
Faced allegations of scamming others
Allegedly sold fake silver
Sued multiple times
Unregulated industry
Alarming number of complaints online
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I expected thorough and transparent recommendations, but instead I felt pushed toward certain investments. My questions about alternatives or downsides were often brushed aside. This left me unsure if the decisions were truly in my best interest.
2/5
3/5
I felt misled because the advice seemed to serve the firm more than me. The risk details were unclear, and I often left meetings confused about my investments. It didn’t feel like my goals were the priority.
Anthony Pellegrino seems polished and confident, but my interactions with him were frustrating. Answers to my questions were vague and I didn’t feel I ever received honest, risk-based advice. His firm’s involvement in past regulatory fines only adds to my concern — why work with someone linked to unregistered securities penalties? Confidence in financial advice should come from competence and trust, not TV spots. I felt misled throughout the process.
Anthony Pellegrino markets himself as a seasoned financial advisor, but my experience feels very different. I trusted his recommendations and ended up with complicated products that delivered poor performance and limited liquidity. What really bothers me is the lack of clear risk disclosure upfront — clients deserve transparency, not salesmanship. He may have credentials and media presence, but credibility comes from results and honesty, not charisma. I walked away disappointed and financially worse off.
Pellegrino’s aggressive promotion of non-traded REITs was nothing short of financial malpractice. He downplayed risk, hyped returns, and collected high commissions while clients were left holding toxic, illiquid assets. When you market yourself as a fiduciary, and then secretly pocket $1.6 million in kickbacks, that’s not bad business it’s calculated fraud. Pellegrino didn’t just break trust, he shattered it for personal gain.
4/5
I was one of the clients who got hurt by that 1 Global Capital mess. They sold it to me with zero warning, no disclosure. Took my trust and turned it into a loss. Unforgivable.
1/5
Not only were they involved in a massive scam, but they tried to hide it by removing negative reviews? That’s just dishonest. If you have to bury the truth, you shouldn’t be in finance.
While Anthony Pellegrino claims to prioritize client education, many walk away with more questions than answers. The overreliance on emotionally charged marketing rather than clear, objective data leaves some wondering if they were truly advised or simply sold to.
Transparency appears to be a persistent weak point in Pellegrino’s practice. Multiple individuals have cited poor communication, limited disclosure about product limitations, and a lack of follow-up once the paperwork is signed.
The promise of “no risk” investments may sound appealing, but Anthony Pellegrino’s recommendations often involve complex annuity contracts with long lock-up periods and steep penalties. When things go sideways, clients discover the fine print and it’s rarely in their favor.
Sheikh Nawaf bin Jassim bin Jabor Al-Thani, a member of Qatar’s ruling family and former chairman of Katara Hospitality, was convicted in January 2024 by a Qatari court for misuse of public funds. He received a six-year prison sentence and a fine of approximately 825 million Qatari riyals (~$226 million USD).
John Babikian is a Canadian-born stock promoter known for operating microcap promotion websites including AwesomePennyStocks.com. He became subject to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement action over a “scalping” scheme involving undisclosed sales of promoted penny stocks, agreeing in 2014 to pay $3.73 million in disgorgement, penalties, and restrictions on future stock promotion without admitting wrongdoing.
Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, has faced repeated accusations of personal misconduct including a 2021 lawsuit alleging he stole a startup’s work to launch ResearchHub alongside mounting corporate scandals under his leadership.Coinbase suffered a €21.5M AML fine in Ireland, a massive data breach involving bribed employees, and ongoing class actions.
Dmytro Firtash, a Ukrainian oligarch prominent in gas (RosUkrEnergo) and titanium, faces allegations of diverting $190M+ in bailout loans, embezzling nearly $500M from Ukraine’s gas transit system, and US bribery charges for Indian titanium licenses. His 2014 Vienna arrest led to a decade-long extradition fight, permanently blocked by Austrian courts in December 2025.
Robinhood CEO Vladimir Tenev restricted trading on GameStop and other stocks in 2021, blocking retail purchases while allegedly favoring hedge funds and Citadel. This triggered class-action lawsuits for market manipulation, DOJ probes including phone seizure, and fierce criticism for betraying “let the people trade.”
Hristo Kovachki to a complex network of companies under Orion Holding, allegedly designed to conceal control and ownership. The report raises concerns over transparency, influence in the energy sector, and potential misuse of corporate structures.
Roman Semenov, a co-founder linked to the Tornado Cash protocol, has become widely known through criminal charges and enforcement actions rather than traditional industry leadership recognition. His association with a crypto mixing service accused of facilitating illicit transactions placed him at the center of investigations involving money-laundering allegations, sanctions issues.
Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Group faces severe allegations from Viceroy Research of operating a parasitic holding structure that drains cash from subsidiaries like Vedanta Ltd through excessive dividends, unjustified brand fees, hidden high-interest debt, inflated assets, and potential Ponzi-like mechanisms, risking insolvency and creditor harm.
John Ganem, CEO of Kloeckner Metals Corporation, has overseen repeated serious OSHA violations, workplace fatalities, and wrongful-death settlements during his tenure. Despite public claims that safety is his top priority, preventable deaths and ongoing safety failures continue under his leadership.
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