Case docket
Federal Trade Commission v. Ponte Investments, LLC — D.R.I.
Federal Trade Commission v. Ponte Investments, LLC — 14 court filings in the archive, mostly from U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, filed between April 17, 2020 and September 25, 2020. Among them: 4 declarations, 3 exhibits and 3 stipulations.
Case facts
| Court | U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island (7 filings); U.S. District Court, District of Rhode Island (5 filings) |
|---|---|
| Filings | 14 public filings |
| Filed | 2020-04-17 – 2020-09-25 |
| Document types | declarations (4), exhibits (3), stipulations (3), motion (1) |
| Original PDFs | 14 of 14 |
Case summary
Federal Trade Commission v. Ponte Investments, LLC, No. 1:20-cv-00177 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, was filed April 17, 2020 against Ponte Investments, LLC, also doing business as SBA Loan Program and SBA Loan Program.com, and its owner and president John C. Ponte. The FTC brought the action under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act to obtain injunctive and equitable relief for practices it alleges violate Section 5(a). Count I alleges misrepresentations about loans, that the defendants represented they could make Paycheck Protection Program loans when they were not authorized to do so; Count II alleges misrepresentations that the defendants are, or are affiliated with, the Small Business Administration. A stipulated preliminary injunction was entered April 20, 2020 and a stipulated final order on September 25, 2020.
Case at a glance
| Parties | Plaintiff Federal Trade Commission; defendants Ponte Investments, LLC, also doing business as SBA Loan Program and SBA Loan Program.com, a Rhode Island limited liability company, and John C. Ponte, its owner, managing member and president |
|---|---|
| Court and docket | U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, No. 1:20-cv-00177-JJM-PAS, before Chief Judge John J. McConnell |
| Program | Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) under the CARES Act, administered by the Small Business Administration |
| Claims | Count I, misrepresentations about loans, and Count II, misrepresentations concerning government status, both as deceptive acts or practices in violation of Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), with relief sought under Section 13(b), 15 U.S.C. § 53(b) |
| Disposition or status | Resolved by stipulation. A stipulated preliminary injunction was entered April 20, 2020; the parties filed a stipulated motion to stay pending settlement on July 8, 2020; a stipulated final order was signed September 25, 2020. The order's text on this page is an image that extracts only as page stamps and the signature block |
| Status checked | 2026-09-23 · against DOJ press releases through 2026-09-22; court docket not yet read |
What does the complaint allege?
That SBA Loan Program solicited PPP applications from small business owners by telephone, e-mail and the website sbaloanprogram.com, whose pop-up screen stated "CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program" and at times "WE ARE A DIRECT LENDER FOR THE PPP LOAN PROGRAM!", and that in truth the defendants are not authorized to make PPP loans. These are the FTC's allegations.
What relief did the FTC seek?
Temporary, preliminary and permanent injunctive relief, rescission or reformation of contracts, restitution, the refund of monies paid, disgorgement of ill-gotten monies and other equitable relief, under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act.
How did the case end?
With a stipulated final order signed by Chief Judge John J. McConnell on September 25, 2020, stipulated and agreed for the plaintiff by FTC attorney Thomas Widor on September 24, 2020.
Summary written from the documents on this page; every sentence is sourced.
Filings
14 public filings from this case, in filing-date order.
- Exhibit A — SBALoanProgram.com screenshotExhibit · PDF
- Exhibit B — SBALoanProgram.com PPP application formExhibit · PDF
- Exhibit C — SBALoanProgram.com March 31, 2020 archive screenshot — FTC v. Ponte (D.R.I.)Exhibit · PDF
- FTC complaint for permanent injunctionPDF
- Memorandum in Support of Temporary Restraining Order — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsPDF
- Motion for Temporary Restraining Order — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsMotion · PDF
- Declaration of Rufus Jenkins (PX 1) — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsDeclaration · PDF
- Declaration of Susan E. Streich, SBA (PX 2)Declaration · PDF
- Declaration of Sarah Kerman (PX 3) — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsDeclaration · PDF
- Declaration of Michelle Harmon (PX 4) — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsDeclaration · PDF
- Stipulated preliminary injunctionStipulation · PDF
- Stipulated motion to temporarily stay case to consider settlement agreement — FTC v. Ponte (D.R.I.)Stipulation · PDF
- Joint Motion for Entry of Stipulated Final Order for Permanent Injunction — FTC v. Ponte InvestmentsPDF
- Stipulated final order for permanent injunctionStipulation · PDF
Court, dates and docket numbers are as recorded on the filings.