The Private Market Bet That Went Bust

It started with a promise that sounded too good to pass up... and now it’s ending with SEC investigations, frozen accounts, and shattered dreams.

At American Prosperity, our philosophy is simple: Buy outstanding businesses at great prices, then sit back and let the business do the heavy lifting.

We don’t chase the latest fads. We don’t gamble on get-rich-quick schemes. 

And we definitely don’t throw caution to the wind chasing "the next big thing."

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what investors in Linqto did. And now, many of them are learning a hard and expensive lesson.

Linqto was one of the hottest names in the world of private market investing. 

The pitch was simple: It claimed to offer regular investors access to shares of big-name private companies before they went public.

For as little as $1,000, you could grab a piece of pre-IPO darlings like Ripple, SpaceX, and Stripe. It sounded like a dream. 

For years, only Silicon Valley insiders and venture capitalists could get in on deals like these.

Investors poured money into Linqto’s platform, which the company boasted about having nearly 750,000 users. 

Marketing emails screamed "limited availability" and "act fast."

But behind the curtain... things weren’t what they seemed.

According to the Wall Street Journal, internal documents now show that Linqto was marking up shares by as much as 60% without telling customers. 

In one infamous email, the CEO told his team to ignore the lawyers and "take no prisoners." 

The goal wasn’t investor protection — it was to push sales at any cost.

Worse yet, an internal investigation revealed that many Linqto customers may not have actually owned the shares they thought they did. 

Some of the investments were never properly transferred, and others were sold to people who weren’t even legally allowed to buy them.

Now, Linqto is under federal investigation. 

The SEC and Justice Department are circling. Bankruptcy seems imminent. 

Investors who thought they owned stakes in high-flying private companies may walk away with nothing.

It’s a classic example of what happens when investors try to reach for the brass ring, looking for extra returns in places they don’t fully understand.

At American Prosperity, we take the opposite approach.

We invest in world-class businesses... run by top-notch CEOs... with strong financials... and a proven track record of creating shareholder value.

We don’t rely on hype. We rely on hard numbers and common sense.

We don’t promise overnight riches. We focus on the power of time and compounding.

Because when you buy outstanding businesses at the right price — and hold them for the long term — the results speak for themselves.

You don’t need backroom deals or insider access. You just need a simple, disciplined strategy that works... year after year.

So when stories like Linqto make headlines... It’s a good reminder: In the race for fast profits, too many investors end up with empty pockets.

But by keeping it simple, sticking to quality businesses, and letting compounding do the work...

That’s how real wealth is built.

Email me at [email protected].

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Regards,

Charles Mizrahi
Prosperity Insider