Founder And CEO Of Bay Area Real Estate Investment Fund Charged In Multi-Year Fraud Scheme

SAN FRANCISCO - Mark Hanf, the founder and CEO of Pacific Private Money, and Nam Phan, the fund group's COO, have been charged in an information filed by the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California with wire fraud conspiracy. Hanf has also been charged with money laundering. Hanf and Phan made their initial appearances in federal court in San Francisco today and waived indictment.

According to the information filed on August 31, 2026, Hanf, 66, of Tiburon, California, and Phan, 58, of Novato, California, allegedly engaged in a multi-year conspiracy to defraud Pacific Private Money investors by making false statements about the enterprise's financial condition to induce investment into the enterprise's funds. During this time, Hanf served as the enterprise's Chief Executive Officer and majority owner, and Phan as the enterprise's Chief Operating Officer. The information describes how Hanf and Phan knew as early as 2021 that a number of Pacific Private Money's largest projects were losing money and value, putting Pacific Private Money's overall financial condition at risk, but Hanf and Phan continued to solicit investors without disclosing the problems. The information further alleges that as the financial condition of Pacific Private Money worsened, starting in December 2021 Hanf and Phan moved money between Pacific Private Money investment funds to keep them afloat and used new investor funds to pay distributions and redemptions to previous investors.

Pacific Private Money funds, according to the allegations, raised approximately $103 million from over 175 investors between approximately December 2021 and December 2025. In June 2026, the Pacific Private Money entities filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the Northern District of California.

"These charges brought soon after the collapse of Pacific Private Money reflect this Office's unwavering commitment to protecting investors in the Bay Area from fraud," said U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian. "As alleged, these defendants falsely assured investors that Pacific Private Money was successful and profitable, knowing that continued losses had turned it into a Ponzi scheme. The Office will continue to pursue fraud in private markets and aggressively prosecute them to protect the public."

"These allegations underscore the FBI's commitment to expose sophisticated financial schemes that put investors at risk," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Scott Schelble. "We will continue to work closely with our partners to ensure the public is protected and those who engage in deceptive schemes are held accountable."

"The allegations against Pacific Private Money founders describe a scheme that misrepresented, diverted, and used incoming investment funds to mask growing financial losses," said IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI) San Francisco Field Office Acting Special Agent in Charge David Lowe. "IRS CI is focused on unraveling complex financial crimes, tracing every dollar, and ensuring that individuals accused of manipulating investor money for personal gain are held accountable."

The information also alleges that part of the scheme involved Hanf transferring funds from the Pacific Private Money enterprise to another entity that he controlled to pay for his own personal expenses, such as credit card bills and home mortgage payments.

An information merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison as to the wire fraud conspiracy count, and Hanf faces a maximum of 10 years in prison as to the money laundering count. Any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.

Phan is next scheduled to appear in district court on September 23, 2026, for a change of plea hearing, and Hanf is next scheduled to appear in district court on September 30, 2026, for a change of plea hearing, both before U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley.

The SEC today also filed a civil enforcement action against Hanf and Phan in the Northern District of California.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christiaan Highsmith and Patrick O'Brien are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Mimi Lam and Maryam Beros. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and IRS-CI. The U.S. Attorney's Office thanks the San Francisco Regional Office of the SEC and the Marin County District Attorney's Office for their assistance in the investigation.