The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed partially settled charges on July 20, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts (No. 26-cv-13301) against Florida resident Zan Shaikh and his company Bright Vision Distribution LLC, d/b/a Mining Automatic, alleging they misappropriated and misused investor funds in a fraudulent scheme involving purported crypto asset mining (Litigation Release No. 26590).
Allegations
The complaint alleges Shaikh and Mining Automatic raised approximately $22 million from more than 380 investors between approximately June 2023 and May 2025. According to the SEC, the defendants promised investors guaranteed monthly returns from investing in a purported crypto asset mining operation that was insufficient to generate the promised returns, and made misrepresentations about their experience, expertise, and track record in crypto asset mining, the uses of investors’ money, the status of the crypto asset mining operations, and the purported reasons why they could not make monthly payments to investors when they were due.
Alleged misuse of funds
The complaint alleges that despite representations that investor funds would be used for crypto asset mining, Shaikh and Mining Automatic used only about 13% of investors’ funds on expenses relating to purported crypto asset mining. According to the SEC, the defendants took in at least $20 million more in investments than they have repaid to investors, and investor funds were used largely for marketing to solicit new investors and to pay for Shaikh’s personal and unrelated business expenses.
Settlement terms
Shaikh and Mining Automatic consented to the entry of judgments, subject to court approval, permanently enjoining them from violating Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act, and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The judgments would also impose an officer-and-director bar and a conduct-based injunction against Shaikh. The defendants shall pay disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties in amounts to be determined by the Court upon motion by the Commission.