State securities regulators have thrown a hard stop on a Columbus investment outfit, accusing the firm and its owner of misleading locals with big-profit promises and unregistered deals tied to a call center venture.
The Ohio Division of Securities issued an administrative cease-and-desist order on March 30 against Clarence Shaw and his company, Syntax Financial Group. The order says the firm dangled outsized returns and then shifted investor money in ways the Division describes as improper, all tied to a plan to fund a call center with outside investments. The action stems from a Division investigation that began in 2025.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, state filings include complaints from at least two small investors who say they sent thousands of dollars to Syntax in 2021 and never saw their principal or the promised interest again. One investor, identified only by initials in the filings, reportedly wired $5,000 via Zelle and later added another $8,000. A second investor allegedly sent $8,000 in two $4,000 payments. The Dispatch reports the documents show Syntax wiring money to a vendor called outbounders.com and pitching an "equity pool" agreement that guaranteed unusually high short-term returns.
A legal notice that quietly appeared in early May formalized the state’s move as Division Order 26-003 and spelled out the Division’s findings, according to Gannett Classifieds. The notice says regulators concluded that Shaw and Syntax violated Ohio law by making false representations, engaging in fraudulent acts and selling securities that were neither registered nor exempt from registration. It also lays out how the respondents can challenge the order in a court of common pleas.
The Columbus Dispatch reports that Shaw formed Syntax Financial Group as an Ohio LLC on March 19, 2021. Division investigators, according to the newspaper, determined that Syntax had not filed a securities registration or claimed any exemption from registration requirements. When reporters tried to reach Shaw and the company, they ran into disconnected phone numbers and an email address that bounced back. As of May 20, the Dispatch notes there was no record of a response from Shaw or Syntax in Franklin County Common Pleas online filings.
What investors can do
Investors who think they were approached by Syntax, or who believe they lost money in the alleged offering, can submit a complaint to the Division and review past enforcement actions. The Ohio Division of Securities operates an online portal where the public can file complaints and search its database of orders in enforcement and administrative cases. For details on submitting a complaint or looking up Division Order 26-003 and other cases, visit the Ohio Division of Securities website.
What the order alleges
In the published notice, regulators say Shaw and Syntax knowingly made false representations, carried out fraudulent acts and sold securities that were not registered or exempt under Ohio law. Division Order 26-003 gives the respondents 15 days after the date the notice was published to appeal the findings to a county court of common pleas, and it requires that any appeal documents also be filed with the Division’s Columbus office. The order cites specific sections of the Ohio Revised Code that state officials say were violated.
According to state regulators and reporters, the case fits into broader enforcement efforts aimed at tamping down on unregistered offerings and eye-catching return promises that target individual investors. More information could surface if the Division or Shaw files additional paperwork. In the meantime, officials say investors with potential exposure should hang on to any emails, texts or paperwork related to Syntax and use the Division’s portal for questions or complaints.
