An Arizona District Court Judge granted a sealed Temporary Restraining Order against USFIA and its founder, Steve Chen, on September 28th. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had filed the request on September 22nd, targeting a wide network of affiliated companies and individuals in what marks a significant regulatory action.

The court order remains under seal, limiting the public details of the SEC's specific allegations. The defendants named in the SEC's request include Steve Chen, Alliance Financial Group, Aborell MGMT LLC, Aborell Advisors LLC, Aborell Reit II LLC, Ahome Real Estate LLC, Amkey Inc, US China Consultation Association, and Quail Ranch Golf Course LLC.

Following the TRO grant, FBI and SEC agents arrived at USFIA offices at 1 PM, clearing the building and seizing assets. Everything went into boxes for removal. Separately, several FBI officers visited the home of John Wuo, with backup provided by the Arcadia Police Department. At the time of publication, Wuo was not listed as a defendant in the SEC's TRO request.

This action represents the first regulatory enforcement against a multi-level marketing (MLM) cryptocurrency opportunity in the United States. The SEC's move signals increased scrutiny of such business models.

The TRO included provisions for freezing numerous bank accounts associated with USFIA and its affiliates. Bank of America held four USFIA Inc. accounts, two AHome Real Estate LLC accounts, four Amkey Inc. accounts, one Aborell Investment Associates I LLC account, two Apollo Advisors I LLC accounts, one Apollo Investors account, one Apollo Mgmt I LLC account, four Alliance NGN Inc. accounts, one Aborell Management I LLC account, one Apollo REIT I account, two US China Consultation Association accounts, one Alliance Financial Group account, and two Quail Ranch Golf Club LLC accounts. It also held two accounts in the names of Steve Chen and Luyang Li.

Additional frozen accounts include one USFIA Inc. account with East West Bank, one account with Far East National Bank in the name of "Li Chen aka Steve Chen," one Chase Bank account for Steve Chen, and another Chase Bank account for "Wei He or Li Chen." Amauction Inc. had one account each frozen at Bank of America, National Bank of California, and East West Bank. Amkey Inc. had accounts frozen at First Regional Bank, National Bank of California, and two at Far East National Bank, along with an Amkey VOIP account at First Regional Bank. Aborell REIT II LLC saw accounts frozen at Torrey Pines Bank, two at Bank of America, and one at JPMorgan Chase. Finally, Alliance NGN Inc. had an account frozen at HSBC, Ammine SRL had one at Far East National Bank, and Apollo REIT II LLC had one at JPMorgan Chase.