A Royal Hedge Fund Fruad? – Guy Albert de Chimay
It is being alleged that a New York based hedge fund manager named, Guy Albert de Chimay is a liar.
In particular it is being reported that Chimay, the CEO of Chimay Capital Management, utilized lies about his claims to the Belgian royal family to scammed clients out of more than $6 million, federal prosecutors said.
Specifically, Chimay promised “bridge loans” to pool investors’ money, court papers filed yesterday claim. The problem was that in doing this he, allegedly, falsified bank statements as he swept the money into his personal bank account or spent it, said an SEC complaint (link here) filed in Manhattan Federal Court.
“Rather than using investor money to make bridge loans, Chimay simply stole it,” a civil fraud complaint alleges. “Chimay falsified bank statements to hide the fraud, while diverting at least $6 million into his personal bank account or otherwise misspending it on unrelated firm expenses.”
Investigators said he used the cash for a multimillion-dollar mansion in the Hamptons and an overseas bank account among other items. He also used some of the ill-gotten gains to pay more than $500,000 to a law firm representing him in a divorce.
The SEC said the money-manager told investors his company Chimay Capital had about $200 million in assets and a history of turning big profits for clients. He promised annual returns of 12%.
Chimay, who was featured on three episodes of a 2006 TV documentary titled “Wall Street Warriors“ also claimed to belong to Belgian royalty and to be connected to the famed beer brewed by Trappist monks. “Wall Street takes the brightest people and smashes them into the pavement on a regular basis,” Chimay said on the show. Here is a video showing a tour of the real Chimay brewery:
Perhaps some of the handwriting was on the wall. Chimay had previously shut down certain funds, including an onshore long/short fund named Spartan Mullen Chimay II, due to lack of assets and poor performance in 2006. Apparently related fund entities, were also involved in previous historical litigation as well.
Interestingly, Chimay wasn’t the only TV celebrity at his firm. In 2008, Jason Colodne joined Chimay Capital 
Management. Colodne lost his job at his former employer, Patriarch Partners, for appearing on appeared alongside girlfriend Bethenny Frankel, the unmarried “housewife” on the reality TV show, who was also on the apprentice. Seems like quite a high profile operation on which little operational due diligence may have been performed…..
