Herbalife Under Investigation By FTC

US-ECONOMY-HERBALIFE

Herbalife Under Investigation By FTC

The Federal Trade Commission has launched an investigation into Herbalife, the multilevel marketing company that activist Bill Ackman 14 months ago bet $1 billion was a pyramid scheme.

Herbalife shares, which had been up almost 6 percent before the FTC probe was announced Wednesday afternoon, immediately reversed course and are down about 11 percent, CelebNMusic247.com has learned via 4UMF.com

“Herbalife welcomes the inquiry given the tremendous amount of misinformation in the marketplace,” the company said in a statement. “We are confident that Herbalife is in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.”

Ackman, in a two-and-a-half-hour webcast/conference call Tuesday, said that several whistleblowers had been cooperating with regulators.

The hedge-fund activist, contacted by The Post, said he would have a statement later on Wednesday.

Brent Wilkes, executive director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, which has been in the forefront of the push for an investigation, was informed of the news by The Post and said, “We believe the FTC is absolutely doing the right thing, and we are hopeful the information we were able to provide them from victims and others was convincing and that they are acting on our request to make sure that Latino communities and others are not being defrauded by the company.”

Wilkes’ group recently provided the FTC with the names of 1,000 victims and brought several activists to meet with FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez last month.

A number of high-profile investors, including Carl IcahnGeorge Soros and Bill Stiritz, who have bought up a huge chunk of the shares and have defended the company, could not be reached.

Source