According to reports from CoinWorld, a report surfaced this week accusing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of investigating Jon Isaac for fraudulent activities in a multi-billion dollar deal between Alt5 Sigma and World Liberty Financial. Isaac refuted these claims and distanced himself from the company's leadership team. After investigating the matter, BeInCrypto found that Isaac and Alt5 Sigma (formerly known as JanOne Incorporated) are part of another ongoing SEC investigation. In 2021, the regulator accused Isaac of financial and disclosure fraud. Regarding the Alt5 Sigma investigation, earlier this week, it was reported that Alt5 Sigma has reached a $1.5 billion deal with World Liberty Financial, associated with U.S. President Donald Trump, and is currently under investigation by the SEC for potential fraudulent activities. This claim originated from a news article published by The Information. The report stated that the company's president Jon Isaac engaged in deceptive practices, including inflating earnings and manipulating stocks. Currently, the SEC has not confirmed any new investigations into Alt5 Sigma. BeInCrypto was unable to trace relevant documents. However, it did find another lawsuit filed by the SEC against Isaac in 2021. Regarding the ongoing SEC case against Live Ventures, Isaac is a venture capitalist and entrepreneur based in Las Vegas, currently serving as the CEO of the publicly traded company Live Ventures Incorporated. Following accusations of Isaac's involvement in fraudulent activities related to the Alt5 Sigma-WLFI deal this week, Isaac refuted these allegations on social media. In a post on X, he denied holding any leadership position at Alt5 Sigma and clarified that he currently only serves as the head of Live Ventures. However, he acknowledged owning over 1 million shares of Alt5 Sigma stock. Alt5 Sigma clarified through its social media that it is “unaware of any current investigations by the U.S. SEC into its activities.” However, these posts omitted key details. On its website, Alt5 Sigma currently lists Jon Isaac's father, Tony Isaac, as a company director. Although Tony Isaac is not listed as a defendant in the SEC lawsuit, his managerial role directly connects the family to Alt5 Sigma. In 2021, the SEC accused Live Ventures and JanOne (another publicly traded company) of a series of fraudulent misstatements. Jon and Tony Isaac were directly involved: Jon was the CEO of Live Ventures, and Tony was the CEO of JanOne and a member of Live's board. In 2024, JanOne was renamed Alt5 Sigma. The SEC's accusations against both companies are extensive. The allegations of inflating earnings and manipulating stocks began in August 2021 when the SEC officially charged Jon Isaac and Live Ventures with multiple reporting violations. These violations include inflating revenue and earnings per share, stock promotions, and undisclosed executive compensation. The document also accused Live and JanOne's CFO Virland Johnson of aiding and abetting Isaac. Despite multiple attempts by BeInCrypto to confirm whether the investigation is still ongoing with the SEC, immediate responses were not received. However, according to public documents, the case remains active. To put the timeline into context, the SEC claims Isaac orchestrated a deal in 2016 to boost Live Ventures' fiscal year earnings. It argues that Isaac's strategy deceptively created the illusion that negotiations began before the end of the year. This deal generated $915,500 in fraudulent “other income” and increased Live's pre-tax income by 20%. According to the SEC, Isaac profited from the rise in Live's stock. During this period, Live Ventures stated in a press release that 2016 was the company's most successful year. The regulator claims that Live and Isaac inflated earnings per share by 40% by improperly understating the number of outstanding shares. Furthermore, the SEC alleges that Isaac hired a stock promoter to enhance interest in Live Ventures, exacerbating market impact. According to court documents submitted to the U.S. District Court for Nevada, Isaac's legal team vehemently denied and rebutted these allegations. Independently of the lawsuit, Live's stock saw significant increases in the last few months of 2016. The SEC's investigation also claims that Live Ventures, Isaac, and Johnson misrepresented the date of Live's acquisition of ApplianceSmart (a new subsidiary of JanOne). After the acquisition was completed, Live Ventures reportedly recognized over $3.7 million in “bargain purchase gains” in the first quarter of 2018. This gain refers to the profit recorded when one company acquires another at a price below its asset value. The SEC claims that without this gain, Live Ventures would have reported a loss for the quarter. The lawsuit also claims that Isaac understated his executive compensation in key disclosure documents submitted to Live Venture shareholders. According to the SEC, the company reported that Isaac received only $162,000 in additional compensation from 2016 to 2018. In reality, the amount he evidently received was nearly double that figure. Isaac's ongoing relationship with Alt5 Sigma Despite the ongoing investigation of Isaac, the SEC is seeking to bar Jon Isaac and Johnson from serving as senior officers or directors of publicly traded companies if they are found guilty. Since Tony Isaac is only mentioned as a related party in the lawsuit and is not listed as a defendant, these demands do not apply to him. Although he does not hold a formal leadership position at Alt5 Sigma, a document submitted to the SEC in 2024 confirms a formal business relationship between Isaac, Johnson, Live Ventures, and Alt5 Sigma. The document details a two-year consulting agreement between Isaac and Alt5 Sigma, which began in March 2024. Isaac's responsibilities include providing strategic financial advice, sales, and business development guidance, as well as holding weekly conference calls with management. It also revealed that Isaac Capital Group and Live Ventures were creditors of Alt5 Sigma while it operated as JanOne. Isaac's promissory note debt converted into 465,753 shares in December 2024. This conversion emphasizes that Isaac remains a significant shareholder, and even though he distances himself publicly from Alt5 Sigma, his financial interests are still closely tied to the company. Meanwhile, Alt5 Sigma's website does not list Johnson as holding a leadership position. However, Johnson signed the 2024 SEC document as the company's CFO in March 2025.

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