September 25, 2018

Edward J. DiMaria, the former chief financial officer of Bankrate, Inc., a publicly traded company, plead guilty and was sentenced to ten years in prison for orchestrating an accounting and securities fraud scheme that caused more than $25 million in shareholder losses.  DiMaria admitted that between 2010 and 2014 he took actions to artificially inflate Bankrate’s earnings by leaving millions of dollars in unsupported expense accruals on Bankrate’s books, then selectively reversing those accruals in later quarters to boost earnings, as well as misrepresenting other company expenses.  DiMaria lied to Bankrate’s independent auditors to conceal the fraud.  As a result of the accounting fraud, Bankrate’s financial statements filed with the SEC were materially misstated.  S.D. Fla. USAO; DOJ

Tagged in: Accounting Fraud, Criminal Proceedings, Misrepresentations, Securities Fraud,