***UPDATE: The Atlas Trading Case was dismissed on 3/20/24. Here’s what originally happened. On 12/14/22, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Atlas Trading and @MrZackMorris (Edward Constantinescu) for allegedly scamming investors out of $100 million. Per the SEC Atlas Trading lawsuit, they carried out an alleged scheme that coordinated purchasing shares, promoting them to their followers, and then dumping them for substantial profits.
The Atlas Trading lawsuit also included the following defendants:
- Perry Matlock, a/k/a “PJ Matlock“
- Thomas Cooperman, a/k/a “Tommy Coops“
- Gary Deel, a/k/a “Mystic Mac“
- Mitchell Hennessey, a/k/a “Hugh Henne“
- Stefan Hrvatin a/k/a “LadeBackk”
- Daniel Knight, a/k/a “Deity of Dips.“
- John Rybarcyzk, a/k/a “Ultra Calls,” a/k/a “The Stock Sniper”
Read the SEC lawsuit here.
Here’s a video from Hugh Henne on the case dismissal.
Table of Contents
Atlas Trading @MrZackMorris SEC Lawsuit Introduction
Atlas Trading was a top trading Discord during the COVID-19 pandemic and the GameStop meme stocks craze between March 2020 and April 2021. One could argue that they created the FinTwit (Financial Twitter) phenomenon. Everywhere you looked on Twitter (X), @MrZackMorris, a/k/a Edward Constantinescu, had his meme face popping up, promoting the latest get-rich-quick penny stock. He seemed to be the face for Atlas Trading.
How Their Alleged Scheme Worked
Here’s how the Atlas Trading alleged scheme worked. @MrZackMorris (Edward Constantinescu) would purchase large positions in XYZ penny stock and then post on Twitter that XYZ stock was going to the moon. Then, in the Atlas Trading Discord and on Twitter, the “meme faces” would promote the stock and how it was “going to the moon.” These meme faces also allegedly had positions in XYZ company ahead of the pump. Once they allegedly pumped up the stock, they allegedly dumped it before their followers could, and then the meme faces made large profits.
Social Media
The social media craze has made it easy for scammers to pump and dump stocks on social media profiles and Discord. This isn’t exclusive to the Atlas Trading lawsuit and the stocks that they allegedly promoted. These stock-pumping schemes are rampant in the Bitcoin and pot stocks sectors. Many people will say that Bitcoin isn’t a pumped sector and charts don’t matter, blah, blah, blah. The reality is that all stocks have charts, and all charts matter.
There’s a lot of potential money to be made trading penny stocks and volatile sectors, but the key is knowing how to read the charts. When a trading guru is pumping a stock or sector, traders can capitalize on what they are promoting if they know how to read charts and plan their entries and exits accordingly. So, pumping and dumping stocks is wrong, and other companies, such as Warrior Trading, have been fined recently, too. However, money can be made if you watch what these gurus promote and capitalize on the momentum.
SERVICES |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| DESCRIPTION | Bullish Bears offer trade rooms in our Discord. Our chat rooms include penny stocks, large caps, options, and futures | We offer stock signals and trade alerts through our watch lists and Discord bots using Tradytics | Swing trade and day trade watch lists with hand-picked symbols that have the best chance of breakouts. These are stocks to watch |
| INCLUDED | Trading courses • Live streaming • Discord • Real Time Teaching • Scanners & Bots Trade Rooms | Watch lists • Symbols • Support and resistance levels • Discord bots and scanners Trade Alerts | Swing trade watchlist • Day trade watchlist • Alert levels mapped out • Watch lists updated daily Watch Lists |
Atlas Trading Discord
Atlas Trading’s Discord was among the most active in the trading industry at the time. They had many channels and people posting in their rooms, creating the illusion of being the place to be in the industry. The same was true with Twitter. They were the guys that Twitter traders wanted to be like. It was wild to watch this phenomenon.
Atlas Trading Stocks
The Atlas Trading lawsuit alleged they were a scam, but I must say it. How did anyone fall for this? These guys all hid behind meme profiles. People bought Atlas Trading Stocks that they promoted without doing their due diligence. I’m unsure if @MrZackMorris ever posted a stock chart mapping support and resistance levels. Yet, people fell for this. It’s wild to think about.
Don't Take Investing Advice From Memes
It seems absurd to say this, but do not listen to investing or trading advice from meme accounts. The reality is that most traders are not professionals or financially accredited. They are just people buying and selling stocks. So, why do people unthinkingly follow what they say?
FOMO Trading is the main reason new traders lose money by following meme accounts and trading gurus. They want to make large trading profits like these other traders. However, they don’t realize that it takes money to make money. Also, some of these trading gurus have unethical trading practices that give them an edge in making large gains.
Atlas Trading @MrZackMorris Twitter
@MrZackMorris was Mr. Financial Twitter. The guy had one of the most entertaining profiles in the trading industry while hiding behind Zack Morris’s profile pics. Zack was the leading character in the TV series Saved by the Bell. @MrZackMorris even had a pinned voice tweet from Mr. Belding promoting him for a while.
Many traders took financial advice from a guy hiding behind a Zack Morris meme account. You can’t make this story up. For a while, no one knew what he looked like or that his name was Edward Constantinescu. He would post pictures of himself with his Atlas Trading pals on private jets and fancy vacations; however, he would never show his face.
The man became a Twitter legend, and trading Discords started popping up everywhere. Atlas Trading’s followers and many of these groups couldn’t get enough of the Atlas Trading phenomenon. They wanted to be a part of their crew. It felt like overnight that all these Discords started dominating Twitter, and everyone seemed to be acting like the second coming of Mother Teresa.
Circle J*RK
The whole Financial Twitter phenomenon triggers me when I talk about it. I will be a bit crude when I say this, but it all felt like one big “Circle Jerk” on the Blue Bird Network (Twitter). Everyone was sucking on each other’s Teats, it seemed. “Look at me and how great I am. Look at my awesome trading system or indicator. Or, look at how awesome I am by teaching you my latest and greatest trading system for FREE on YouTube.
Were people giving their trading secrets away for free out of the goodness of their hearts? Or were they making money on the back end by promoting each other through affiliate and cross-promotion networks?
This BS game was what drove me crazy on Twitter. People fell for this garbage and would jump on the circle-jerk train. Many of these promoters sucked on Atlas Trading’s teats the whole time. Then, when the Atlas Trading lawsuit happened, they seemed to disappear completely. Some Discord’s are still around, but the hype has disappeared.
They Were Who They Were
I don’t agree with Atlas Trading or what they allegedly did, but I appreciate that they were who they were, and I must admit they were entertaining. They didn’t kiss anyone else butts. If your eyes were opened, you knew what you were getting with them.
When Atlas Trading lawsuit, many of their groupies acted like they didn’t know it was an alleged scam. They spent much time hanging around the Atlas Trading guys and didn’t know they were alleged scammers?! Come on now. Let’s be real. They knew, and many disappeared because they couldn’t ride on @MrZackMorris’s coattails anymore. Atlas Trading didn’t bother me because I saw it for what it was. The Blue Bird Network, circle-jerk trading pretenders, were the ones that bothered me. I can’t stand when people act fake. Ok, rant over haha.
@MrZackMorris Instagram
I’m a dude, but I can admit that @MrZackMorris (Edward Constantinescu) is good-looking. It’s crazy to say, but he had a combination of a douchey and charming personality. If you look behind the alleged trading ethics, Edward is a funny guy who is incredibly entertaining.
@MrZackMorris became a real-world meme, which was crazy to witness. He hung around beautiful women and lived a lavish lifestyle. It was outwardly douchey, yet he wasn’t douchey. I can’t explain it. I liked the guy but never spoke with him or his crew. He was who he was and didn’t pretend otherwise. Again, this is just my opinion from an outsider looking in.
Final Thoughts: Atlas Trading Lawsuit
Edward Constantine (@MrZackMorris) is back on Twitter. He also has a Discord called FU Money Club, which charges $100 monthly. His tactics have changed, and he’s posting more charts and technical analyses to help people trade. His trading gains also seem very profitable, so it looks like he’s a successful trader. The Atlas Trading guys seem to have gone their way, so who knows if they will get back together?
The Atlas Trading SEC lawsuit was officially dismissed on 3/20/24. From a personal point of view, I’m still in awe of what those guys allegedly pulled off. My brain can’t comprehend how many people fell for it. I’ll say it again. Many people lost money in the stock market by following random meme accounts on Twitter. You can’t make this story up. Who knows?! Maybe there will be an Atlas Trading movie someday?
Frequently Asked Questions
Atlas Trading's lawsuit was dismissed on 3/20/24. In December 2022, the SEC charged Edward Constantin and seven other members of Atlas Trading for scamming investors out of $100 million since at least January 2020.
Investors cannot join Atlas Trading because the SEC shut it down in December 2022.
In December 2022, the SEC shut down the company for running a pump-and-dump scheme that cost investors $100 million. The case was dismissed on 3/20/24.
Twitter influencers can dupe retail investors into buying penny stocks by creating hype. They enter large positions and then create FOMO by promoting the stock to their followers. Once the buyers jump in, the scammers sell their large positions, which causes the price to drop dramatically.
