The Pacific Private Money lawsuit landscape now includes a federal RICO complaint alleging that founder Mark Hanf diverted roughly $75.8 million from investor funds to entities he controlled, along with several other investor suits, a revoked California lending license, a state securities enforcement order, and open criminal investigations by the Marin County District Attorney and the FBI. More than 400 investors are facing losses on at least $139 million pooled into the Novato, California firm’s real-estate funds, and the court-appointed restructuring officer has warned that recoveries will likely be “a fraction” of what people put in.1Marin Independent Journal. Investigations Into Novato Investment Firm Broaden
The Federal RICO Lawsuit
On April 8, 2026, three affiliated California investment funds operating under the WE Alliance name sued Pacific Private Money and its principals in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (Case No. 3:26-cv-03029). The plaintiffs are WE Alliance Secured Income Fund, WE Alliance Structured Strategies Stock Allocations Fund, and WE Alliance Structured Active Allocation Growth Fund. Defendants include Pacific Freedom Fund LLC, Pacific Private Money Inc., Mark Hanf, former COO Nam Phan, and a network of affiliated entities.2Mortgage Professional America. RICO Suit Alleges California Mortgage Fund Funneled $75M to Insider Entities
The complaint alleges that the defendants solicited $74.2 million from 138 investors on the promise of originating loans secured by real property, but instead transferred approximately $75.8 million to entities Hanf owned or controlled. The alleged transfers break down as follows:
- Pacific Private Money Inc.: approximately $38.9 million
- Hanf Capital LLC: approximately $18.4 million
- Pacific Private Money Fund LLC: approximately $13.7 million
- Pacific Realty Development I LLC: approximately $4.1 million
- Pacific Mortgage Capital LLC: approximately $728,000
The suit pleads ten causes of action, including federal RICO racketeering, fraud, intentional misrepresentation, concealment, false promise, conversion, breach of fiduciary duty, and negligence. The plaintiffs contend the defendants never intended to invest the money as described in the private placement memorandum.3The Ark Newspaper. Federal Lawsuit Accuses Tiburon Man of $75 Million Investor Scheme
As of mid-June 2026, the case is in its early stages. Two defendants, Hanf Capital LLC and Pacific Realty Development I LLC, filed answers on June 10. The plaintiffs have moved for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, with a hearing scheduled for June 29, 2026. At a status conference on June 9, defense attorney Ben Young told the court that his clients intend to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. No determination on the merits has been made.4PACER Monitor. WE Alliance Secured Income Fund v. Pacific Freedom Fund
Other Investor Lawsuits
The RICO case is the largest but not the only one. Several other suits have been filed in Marin and Alameda counties and in federal court.5Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Investor Communications
In February 2025, Mark Brown, a former co-manager of the Pacific Southwest Note Fund, sued Hanf and Pacific Private Money employee Edward Brown in the Northern District of Texas. Brown alleged a “systematic scheme to defraud” investors, claiming Hanf moved more than $10 million in mortgage loan assets out of the fund into accounts under his own control. The court denied Brown’s motion to freeze assets and, in December 2025, ordered the dispute to arbitration, where it remained as of mid-2026.6San Francisco Chronicle. Pacific Private Money Mark Hanf
A separate 2023 lawsuit by Berkeley homeowners alleged the firm breached fiduciary duties, and in 2025 a Texas investor sued Hanf alleging fraud and illegal commingling of funds.7San Francisco Chronicle. Investment Firm Red Flag Investors have also filed suits in Marin County court. As of April 2026, no responses to those complaints had been filed.8Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Lender License Revoked
What California Regulators Have Done
California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation moved against the firm in a series of steps in early 2026. On March 16, the DFPI suspended Pacific Private Money’s California Financing Law license for 30 business days. The company did not contest the suspension, did not file its overdue 2025 report of loan activity, and did not respond to two email warnings about the missing report.8Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Lender License Revoked
On April 6, 2026, DFPI Commissioner Khalil Mohseni summarily revoked the license. To seek relicensure, the firm would need to submit a new application and demonstrate full regulatory compliance. A DFPI spokesperson confirmed the firm could still manage its existing loan portfolio despite the revocation.9California DFPI. Enforcement Action, Pacific Private Money Inc.
Then on May 4, 2026, the DFPI issued a desist and refrain order under state securities law against Pacific Private Money Group LLC, Pacific Private Money Inc., six affiliated funds, Mark Hanf, and Nam Phan. The order bars the named parties from offering or selling securities in California through communications containing untrue statements or material omissions. According to the DFPI, the firm raised at least $139 million from more than 400 investors through offerings that failed to disclose three categories of material information: Hanf’s 2007 personal Chapter 7 bankruptcy; a 2014 California Bureau of Real Estate disciplinary action against both Hanf and Pacific Private Money for mishandling trust funds and failing to report self-dealing transactions, which resulted in 45-day license suspensions and $4,500 penalties for each; and the DFPI’s 2022 revocation of the California Financing Law license of Pacific Mortgage Capital LLC, an affiliate that shared ownership, management, and a business address with Pacific Private Money.10The Ark Newspaper. State Orders Tiburon Man, Pacific Private to Cease Investor Fundraising
Regulators concluded that awareness of these events “would alter the total mix of the information available to investors and was therefore material to a reasonable investor,” and noted that “investors have not been repaid millions of dollars in investment capital or returns.”5Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Investor Communications
Criminal and Federal Investigations
The Marin County District Attorney’s Office opened a criminal investigation in early March 2026. Deputy District Attorney Sean Kensinger, who heads the county’s Consumer Protection Unit, confirmed the probe but declined to share specifics.11The Real Deal. California Private Lender Suspected of Defrauding Investors
By April 2026, the FBI’s San Francisco division had opened its own investigation into Pacific Private Money, its entities, and its funds. The bureau set up a dedicated victims’ portal for investors to submit documentation, and the Marin County DA’s office has been directing complainants there.1Marin Independent Journal. Investigations Into Novato Investment Firm Broaden
On April 1, 2026, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman wrote to SEC Chair Paul Atkins and FBI Director Kash Patel urging a “thorough investigation” into the firm and Hanf for potential fraud. Huffman cited constituents who had invested life savings or retirement funds and asked the agencies to pursue civil or criminal enforcement and to seek a court-supervised receiver to take control of company assets. Neither the SEC nor the FBI publicly responded. An SEC spokesperson declined to say whether an investigation exists.12The Ark Newspaper. Huffman Calls for FBI, SEC Probe of Pacific Private, Tiburon Founder
As of mid-2026, no criminal charges have been filed against Hanf or any other Pacific Private Money principal by any agency.13Mercury News. Investigations Into Novato Investment Firm Broaden
How the Collapse Happened
Pacific Private Money, founded by Hanf in 2008, pooled money from accredited investors to fund short-term bridge and “hard money” loans secured by real estate. Its flagship Pacific Freedom Fund was marketed as an evergreen private placement with a 12-month lockup, first-position liens, and targeted yields of 7 to 10 percent, and it actively courted retirees and self-directed IRA holders.
In October or November 2025, the firm stopped making monthly distributions and suspended withdrawals. By December, investors could not access their accounts. The firm later reported to California regulators that it had experienced a “severe liquidity crunch in December.”14California DFPI. Order Suspending CFL License, Pacific Private Money Inc. In December 2025, the company brought in Bill Brinkman of Jigsaw Advisors as chief restructuring officer. Brinkman told investors in January 2026 that the firm was operating with “critically minimal cash balances,” and later told regulators its assets were “tens of millions of dollars short of its liabilities.”5Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Investor Communications The Novato headquarters closed in February 2026 and was stripped of signage.15Yahoo Finance. California Suspends License of Marin Lender Hanf has not publicly responded to media inquiries.
Nam Phan, who joined the firm in 2015 and rose to chief operating officer while holding a 10 percent stake in Pacific Private Money Group LLC, resigned in January 2026, weeks after withdrawals were frozen. She is named in both the DFPI’s securities order and the federal RICO suit.5Press Democrat. Pacific Private Money Marin Investor Communications
What Investors Can Do Now
Affected investors can submit information through the FBI’s dedicated victims’ portal, which the Marin County DA’s office has been publicizing.1Marin Independent Journal. Investigations Into Novato Investment Firm Broaden The chief restructuring officer has warned that recoveries will likely be “a fraction of total capital provided by investors,” and the outcome will depend in part on whether law enforcement finds evidence supporting asset recovery and on any bankruptcy proceedings the Pacific Private Money entities pursue.7San Francisco Chronicle. Investment Firm Red Flag One investor, Dennis Xifaras of Burlingame, told the Marin Independent Journal he is trying to recover $250,000 of a $450,000 investment.
Defense counsel signaled in early June 2026 that the Pacific Private Money entities plan to file for Chapter 11, though no petition had been filed as of that status conference.4PACER Monitor. WE Alliance Secured Income Fund v. Pacific Freedom Fund A bankruptcy filing would typically pause the civil suits and route claims through the bankruptcy court, which is why investors who have not already retained counsel or filed a complaint may want to do so before that happens.