Charlie Javice, who is charged with defrauding JPMorgan Chase & Co into buying her now-shuttered college financial aid startup Frank for $175 million in 2021, arrives at United States Court in Manhattan in New York City, June 6, 2023.
Mike Segar | Reuters
Charlie Javice, founder of a startup purchased by JPMorgan Chase in 2021, was convicted in federal court Friday of defrauding the bank by vastly overstating the company’s customer list.
The jury decision comes after weeks of testimony in New York over who was to blame for the flameout of a once-promising startup. Frank, founded by Javice in 2016, aimed to help users apply for college financial aid.
In its civil suit against Javice, JPMorgan accused Javice, 32, of duping the bank into paying $175 million for a company that had more than 4 million customers, when in reality it had fewer than 300,000.
Starting in 2023, Javice faced four counts from the Justice Department for crimes including wire and bank fraud, charges which carried maximum sentences of three decades.
A spokesperson for JPMorgan declined to comment.
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