Posted inThe Pitch, Uncategorized

Wyoming Attorney General settles with shell companies

Wyoming Attorney General settles with shell companies

— February 7, 2014

(Press release) — The Wyoming Attorney General announced today that he recently reached settlements with several companies that were registered in Wyoming, or claimed to be headquartered in Wyoming, but were actually operating in other states.

VC Merchant Systems LLC, Vendors Choice Merchant Systems, V.C. Direct Solutions LLC, Progressive Media Group LLC, and Vendors Merchant Network were under investigation due to the “business opportunities” they claimed to sell. Consumers were told they would make money processing credit cards. They were then sold thousands of dollars in “leads” that typically yielded no profit. There was no admission of fault; however the companies and their owners agreed to reimburse consumers for over $100,000.

The Wyoming Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Unit also investigated seoworldwide.com, LLC for potential violations of the Wyoming Consumer Protection Act in connection with providing services related to website development and search engine result placement. There was no admission of fault; however the company and its owner agreed to reimburse consumers in the amount of $17,000.

Worldwide Points Solutions, LLC and American Points Exchange, LLC were being investigated after complaints about misrepresentations related to the purchase of timeshare points were made to the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office. There was no admission of fault; however the companies paid approximately $18,000 in refunds to consumers

In addition to consumer reimbursements, the company owners agreed to notify the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office if they form new Wyoming entities or operate any new businesses that claim to be based in Wyoming. All of the settling parties also agreed to strict guidelines about how they will conduct business if they return to the State of Wyoming.

Leave a comment

WyoFile's goal is to provide readers with information and ideas that foster constructive conversations about the issues and opportunities our communities face. One small piece of how we do that is by offering a space below each story for readers to share perspectives, experiences and insights. For this to work, we need your help.

What we're looking for: 

  • Your real name — first and last. 
  • Direct responses to the article. Tell us how your experience relates to the story.
  • The truth. Share factual information that adds context to the reporting.
  • Thoughtful answers to questions raised by the reporting or other commenters.
  • Tips that could advance our reporting on the topic.
  • No more than three comments per story, including replies. 

What we block from our comments section, when we see it:

  • Pseudonyms. WyoFile stands behind everything we publish, and we expect commenters to do the same by using their real name.
  • Comments that are not directly relevant to the article. 
  • Demonstrably false claims, what-about-isms, references to debunked lines of rhetoric, professional political talking points or links to sites trafficking in misinformation.
  • Personal attacks, profanity, discriminatory language or threats.
  • Arguments with other commenters.

Other important things to know: 

  • Appearing in WyoFile’s comments section is a privilege, not a right or entitlement. 
  • We’re a small team and our first priority is reporting. Depending on what’s going on, comments may be moderated 24 to 48 hours from when they’re submitted — or even later. If you comment in the evening or on the weekend, please be patient. We’ll get to it when we’re back in the office.
  • We’re not interested in managing squeaky wheels, and even if we wanted to, we don't have time to address every single commenter’s grievance. 
  • Try as we might, we will make mistakes. We’ll fail to catch aliases, mistakenly allow folks to exceed the comment limit and occasionally miss false statements. If that’s going to upset you, it’s probably best to just stick with our journalism and avoid the comments section.
  • We don’t mediate disputes between commenters. If you have concerns about another commenter, please don’t bring them to us.

The bottom line:

If you repeatedly push the boundaries, make unreasonable demands, get caught lying or generally cause trouble, we will stop approving your comments — maybe forever. Such moderation decisions are not negotiable or subject to explanation. If civil and constructive conversation is not your goal, then our comments section is not for you. 

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Posted inThe Pitch, Uncategorized

Wyoming Attorney General settles with shell companies

Wyoming Attorney General settles with shell companies

— February 7, 2014

(Press release) — The Wyoming Attorney General announced today that he recently reached settlements with several companies that were registered in Wyoming, or claimed to be headquartered in Wyoming, but were actually operating in other states.

VC Merchant Systems LLC, Vendors Choice Merchant Systems, V.C. Direct Solutions LLC, Progressive Media Group LLC, and Vendors Merchant Network were under investigation due to the “business opportunities” they claimed to sell. Consumers were told they would make money processing credit cards. They were then sold thousands of dollars in “leads” that typically yielded no profit. There was no admission of fault; however the companies and their owners agreed to reimburse consumers for over $100,000.

The Wyoming Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Unit also investigated seoworldwide.com, LLC for potential violations of the Wyoming Consumer Protection Act in connection with providing services related to website development and search engine result placement. There was no admission of fault; however the company and its owner agreed to reimburse consumers in the amount of $17,000.

Worldwide Points Solutions, LLC and American Points Exchange, LLC were being investigated after complaints about misrepresentations related to the purchase of timeshare points were made to the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office. There was no admission of fault; however the companies paid approximately $18,000 in refunds to consumers

In addition to consumer reimbursements, the company owners agreed to notify the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office if they form new Wyoming entities or operate any new businesses that claim to be based in Wyoming. All of the settling parties also agreed to strict guidelines about how they will conduct business if they return to the State of Wyoming.

Leave a comment

WyoFile's goal is to provide readers with information and ideas that foster constructive conversations about the issues and opportunities our communities face. One small piece of how we do that is by offering a space below each story for readers to share perspectives, experiences and insights. For this to work, we need your help.

What we're looking for: 

  • Your real name — first and last. 
  • Direct responses to the article. Tell us how your experience relates to the story.
  • The truth. Share factual information that adds context to the reporting.
  • Thoughtful answers to questions raised by the reporting or other commenters.
  • Tips that could advance our reporting on the topic.
  • No more than three comments per story, including replies. 

What we block from our comments section, when we see it:

  • Pseudonyms. WyoFile stands behind everything we publish, and we expect commenters to do the same by using their real name.
  • Comments that are not directly relevant to the article. 
  • Demonstrably false claims, what-about-isms, references to debunked lines of rhetoric, professional political talking points or links to sites trafficking in misinformation.
  • Personal attacks, profanity, discriminatory language or threats.
  • Arguments with other commenters.

Other important things to know: 

  • Appearing in WyoFile’s comments section is a privilege, not a right or entitlement. 
  • We’re a small team and our first priority is reporting. Depending on what’s going on, comments may be moderated 24 to 48 hours from when they’re submitted — or even later. If you comment in the evening or on the weekend, please be patient. We’ll get to it when we’re back in the office.
  • We’re not interested in managing squeaky wheels, and even if we wanted to, we don't have time to address every single commenter’s grievance. 
  • Try as we might, we will make mistakes. We’ll fail to catch aliases, mistakenly allow folks to exceed the comment limit and occasionally miss false statements. If that’s going to upset you, it’s probably best to just stick with our journalism and avoid the comments section.
  • We don’t mediate disputes between commenters. If you have concerns about another commenter, please don’t bring them to us.

The bottom line:

If you repeatedly push the boundaries, make unreasonable demands, get caught lying or generally cause trouble, we will stop approving your comments — maybe forever. Such moderation decisions are not negotiable or subject to explanation. If civil and constructive conversation is not your goal, then our comments section is not for you. 

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Gift this article