The New Jersey Bureau of Securities issued a Cease and Desist Order against Horatiu Charlie Caragaceanu and his organizations for promoting TruthGPT Coin, a cryptocurrency scam that falsely claimed AI capabilities and endorsements from figures like Elon Musk. The respondents misrepresented the AI model's ability to predict cryptocurrency prices and manipulated images to show false endorsements, targeting investors with unrealistic profit promises.
The Cease and Desist Order requires the respondents to immediately stop promoting, offering, and selling TruthGPT Coin and other unregistered securities in New Jersey.
In-house legal teams should review all vendor, customer, and marketing agreements where the company promotes AI-driven financial products or services, particularly those involving cryptocurrency or investment offerings. Specific clauses to scrutinize include representations and warranties regarding AI functionality and predictive accuracy, endorsement and testimonial clauses (to ensure proper consent and avoid fabricated endorsements), marketing and advertising compliance provisions, and risk disclosure requirements. Agreements with third-party promoters or influencers should be examined for clauses requiring verification of claims and prohibiting false endorsements. Recommended changes include adding explicit disclaimers that AI models do not guarantee investment returns, implementing pre-approval processes for any endorsements or testimonials, and strengthening audit rights to verify compliance with advertised AI capabilities.
Entity
Horatiu Charlie Caragaceanu, The Shark of Wall Street, and Hedge4.ai
Also known as: Hedge4.ai
Industry
Financial ServicesOfficial Press Release
https://www.njoag.gov/new-jersey-bureau-of-securities-joins-other-states-in-effort-to-stop-artificial-intelligence-investment-scam/
2023 0510 TruthGPT Coin C&D
https://www.nj.gov/oag/newsreleases23/2023-0510_TruthGPT-Coin-C&D.pdf
New Jersey Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://www.njoag.gov/about/divisions-and-offices/division-of-consumer-affairs/
"Horatiu Charlie Caragaceanu and his organizations, The Shark of Wall Street and Hedge4.ai (collectively, “Respondents”)."
"promoting TruthGPT Coin, a cryptocurrency that purportedly uses an artificial intelligence model called Elon Musk AI."
"According to the Cease and Desist Order, the Respondents are misrepresenting Elon Musk’s endorsement of TruthGPT Coin, and they are manipulating animated avatars and images of Elon Musk to falsely demonstrate his endorsement."
"The Bureau issued the enforcement action in coordination with several states bringing actions against Horatiu Charlie Caragaceanu and his organizations."
$100K
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and the Division of Consumer Affairs announced a Consent Order with King Distribution LLC and 17 related retail smoke shops, resolving allegations that the companies illegally sold flavored vapor products in violation of New Jersey’s consumer protection laws. The Consent Order imposes a $100,000 civil penalty, requires reimbursement of $22,279 in investigation costs, and prohibits the companies from selling or distributing flavored vapor products in New Jersey. The enforcement action is part of New Jersey’s ongoing efforts to protect youth from flavored vape products, which have been permanently banned in the state since January 2020.
The New Jersey Bureau of Securities issued a Cease and Desist Order on April 30, 2026, against Titan Macro Finance for operating an investment fraud scheme via WhatsApp and Instagram that defrauded at least one New Jersey investor of $64,000. The scheme involved unregistered broker-dealer activity, fake trading profits, and undisclosed fees to access investor funds. The action was coordinated with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, which issued a similar order against the entity for violating California’s Commodity Code.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and the Bureau of Securities issued a public warning to state residents about fraudulent investment schemes proliferating on Meta-owned platforms including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The alert details common scam tactics such as pump-and-dump schemes, confidence scams, and fraudulent cryptocurrency offerings, and provides tips for residents to avoid victimization. No enforcement action against any entity was announced in this release.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport led a bipartisan coalition of 27 state attorneys general in submitting a comment letter to the Federal Trade Commission urging federal rulemaking to regulate hidden and deceptive rental housing fees. The AG also issued guidance clarifying New Jersey’s new $50 rental application fee cap, effective May 1, 2026, warning that deceptive fee practices may violate the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act. No specific enforcement action against a named individual entity was announced, with enforcement of the fee cap set to begin May 1, 2026.
$2.0M
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced a multistate settlement with NCL Bahamas, Ltd. (Norwegian Cruise Line) resolving allegations of deceptive sales practices and unfair cancellation, refund, and future cruise credit policies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The settlement requires NCL to pay $2 million to participating states, implement employee training and management approval processes for sales communications during disasters, and prohibits deceptive sales statements and prioritizing sales over consumer health and safety. NCL has already issued over $3 billion in refunds and future cruise credits to consumers nationwide related to the underlying allegations.
Ibelis Gonzalez, a 46-year-old Jersey City resident, was indicted on charges including second-degree theft by deception, second-degree impersonation/theft of identity, and third-degree false government documents. She is alleged to have used fake identification to obtain debit cards in six victims' names, stealing approximately $86,840 from their bank accounts between May and June 2024. The case is being prosecuted by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, with potential maximum fines of $150,000 for second-degree charges and $15,000 for third-degree charges.