On August 17, 2015, the SEC announced that Citigroup Alternative Investments LLC and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. agreed to "pay nearly $180 million to settle charges that they defrauded investors in two hedge funds by claiming they were safe, low-risk, and suitable for traditional bond investors." According to the SEC: "The funds later crumbled and eventually collapsed during the financial crisis."

On August 17, 2015, the SEC instituted settled administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings against Citigroup Alternative Investments LLC and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. According to the SEC: "These proceedings concern material misstatements and omissions made by Respondents between 2002 and 2007 in the offer and sale of securities in two now-defunct hedge funds--the ASTA and MAT funds ('ASTA/MAT') and Falcon Strategies funds ('Falcon')."

On April 14, 2016, the Commission ordered the appointment of Garden City Group as the fund plan administrator and required that Garden City Group obtain a bond in the amount of $179,562,328.

"Notice is hereby given, pursuant to Rule 1103 of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's ("Commission") Rules on Fair Fund and Disgorgement Plans ("Rules"), 17 C.F.R.§ 201.1103, that the Division of Enforcement has submitted to the Commission a proposed plan of distribution ("Plan") for the distribution of monies paid by Citigroup Alternative Investment LLC ("CAI") and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. ("CGMI") (collectively, "Respondents") in the above-captioned matter."

According to the SEC: "On September 11, 2017, pursuant to Rule 1103 of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's ("Commission") Rules on Fair Fund and Disgorgement Plans ("Rules"), 17 C.F.R.§ 201.1103, the Commission published a Notice of Proposed Plan of Distribution and Opportunity to Comment ("Notice")1 for the distribution of monies placed into a Fair Fund in the above-captioned matter. The Notice invited public comment on the proposed plan of distribution ("Plan") through October 11, 2017, and the Commission received public comments that raised various issues. . . IT IS ORDERED that pursuant to Rule 1104 of the Rules,2 for good cause shown, the time for entering an order approving or disapproving the Plan is extended to February 12, 2018."

According to the SEC: "IT IS ORDERED that pursuant to Rule 1104 of the Rules, for good cause shown, the time for entering an order approving or disapproving the Plan is extended to March 30, 2018."

The SEC stated that: "After considering the comments to the Proposed Plan [of Distribution], Commission staff, working with the Commission-appointed fund administrator, GCG, have added modifications that address the comments received (the "Plan"). After careful consideration, the Commission concludes that the Plan should be approved."

The SEC stated that: "The purpose of this Plan of Distribution ("Plan") is to refund a portion of the investors' losses between 2002 and 2008 (the "Recovery Period"). The distribution methodology allocates the Net Available Distribution Fund (as defined below) to the nine Potentially Eligible Funds in a manner that attempts to equalize investors' aggregate recovery of losses across those nine funds. The methodology further allocates the distributions among harmed investors in proportion to their Investment Amount or Adjusted Investment Amount, as the case may be, within each Eligible Fund. . . . This Plan sets forth the methods and procedures for distributing the Distribution Fund."

The Commission stated: "[I]t is hereby ORDERED, that Commission staff shall transfer $184,864,153 from the Distribution Fund to the Distribution Fund's escrow account at The Huntington National Bank, and the Fund Administrator shall distribute such monies to Eligible Investors as provided for in the Plan."