InterBolsa's Fondo Premium fraud cost COP 500 billion, 12 years for brokers

InterBolsa was Colombia's largest brokerage firm before its collapse in 2012. The scandal centered on the Fondo Premium, a fund based in Curacao that collected money from 1,206 investors. Without informing their clients, brokers diverted the funds to shell companies in Panama, Curacao, and the British Virgin Islands, used them to pay personal debts, invested in risky ventures, and purchased luxury items. All 1,206 investors lost their entire investments in what became the biggest stock market scandal in Colombian history.

The fraud was approximately COP 500 billion (roughly $277 million). The mastermind was Italian investor Alessandro Corridori, sanctioned in 2014 but never tried due to statute of limitations. Three key brokers were convicted — Tomas Jaramillo Botero, Juan Carlos Ortiz Zarate, and Ricardo Emilio Martinez Gomez. Their initial sentences of 3 to 5 years were increased on appeal to 12 years and 3 months for Jaramillo and Ortiz, and 10 years for Martinez.

The Supreme Court of Colombia ratified the 12-year sentences in October 2022, rejecting all appeals. The court found the brokers guilty of aggravated mass fraud, fraudulent manipulation of securities, and criminal conspiracy. The victims had invested their life savings in the fund, seeking returns, but only about 1 in 1,000 had been compensated by 2023. The administrative court declared the statute of limitations expired for the reparations process against key defendants, making recovery nearly impossible. The case remains the largest stock market scandal in Colombia's history.