SEC charges two former PPMG executives over alleged investor fraud

Mark D. Hanf, former CEO of Pacific Private Money Group LLC (PPMG), and Hoai-Nam Chu Phan, former COO of a PPMG subsidiary, were charged by the SEC with offering fraud. The alleged scheme pulled in more than $80 million from approximately 190 investors, many of whom were retired senior citizens.

The SEC’s Sept. 1 release dates the operation from approximately December 2021 through November 2025. New investor money, the agency alleges, was allegedly used to make payments to earlier investors. Hanf allegedly siphoned more than $7 million for personal use.

By February 2026, the two funds carried almost $121 million in outstanding investments against estimated total recoverable assets of less than $17 million — a shortfall somewhere around $104 million, a gap of at least roughly 86% of the outstanding investments (($121 million – $17 million) / $121 million). Both figures are approximations in the filing, so final recovery rates hinge on where the asset and bankruptcy proceedings end up.

Things started unraveling in fall 2025 when investors sought withdrawals the funds couldn’t cover. Jason Lee, associate director of the SEC’s San Francisco Regional Office, put it plainly in the release: “Despite total outstanding investments in the two private funds of almost $121 million, by February 2026 the total recoverable assets of those funds were estimated to be less than $17 million. That amounts to devastating losses for so many investors.”

The fundraising numbers don’t perfectly match across the two agencies. The SEC describes more than $80 million from approximately 190 investors. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California puts it at approximately $103 million from over 175 investors, between approximately December 2021 and December 2025.

The criminal case landed the same day. An information filed Aug. 31 charges Hanf, 66, of Tiburon, California, and Phan, 58, of Novato, California, with wire fraud conspiracy. Hanf faces an additional money-laundering count. The Northern District of California alleges both falsely assured investors that Pacific Private Money was profitable while continued losses had turned it into a Ponzi scheme — that characterization is the government’s allegation, not an established finding. U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian said the office would “continue to pursue fraud in private markets and aggressively prosecute them to protect the public.” The supplied SEC and DOJ materials do not include a response or account from Hanf, Phan, or PPMG.

Pacific Private Money entities filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June 2026. Which specific PPMG subsidiary Phan ran as COO isn’t identified in the filings.

Both defendants consented to civil judgments — subject to court approval — that would permanently bar them from violating federal securities laws and from participating in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any securities, except in their personal accounts.

Wire fraud conspiracy carries a maximum of 20 years per defendant; the money-laundering charge adds a potential 10-year maximum for Hanf. Phan’s change-of-plea hearing is scheduled for Sept. 23, 2026. Hanf’s follows Sept. 30. No prior SEC action against PPMG or its principals that is comparable to the current charges appears in the supplied materials.