Boxer Felix “Tito” Trinidad Jr, who grossed nearly US$90 million during his championship career in the ring, is in economic ruin, just like his native Puerto Rico, according to court documents.
The boxer and his father, Felix Trinidad Sr, who trained him throughout his career, lost about US$63 million through investments linked to Puerto Rican government bonds, papers filed on Thursday in San Juan Superior Court show.
Trinidad and his father are seeking an injunction to halt San Juan-based Popular Securities, a brokerage arm of Puerto Rico’s biggest bank, Banco Popular, from collecting a US$2.9 million debt.
Photo: Reuters
The injunction request included a complaint filed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, in which the Trinidads accused their financial adviser, Jose “Pepe” Ramos, of making risky investments without their consent or knowledge.
“The accusations by the Trinidad family are false and the truth will come out when this case is aired in the pertinent forum,” Ramos said in a written statement.
During Trinidad’s glory days in the ring during the late 1990s and early 2000s, Puerto Rico’s economy was growing by as much as 3 percent a year. Its government bonds were rated as investment grade.
However, Trinidad, like hundreds of other wealthy Puerto Rico investors, lost millions when those bonds headed south in September last year as investors became alarmed over the US territory’s US$70 billion debt load, sputtering economy and inability to balance budgets.
Total capital and assets held in Puerto Rican mutual funds shrank by about US$6 billion last year and they posted losses totaling almost US$2.4 billion, according to the Office of Financial Institutions Commissioner.
The Trinidads accused Ramos of making investments without their consent or knowledge and misleading them about the level of risk involved in the investments, according to the FINRA complaint.
Nearly all of Trinidad’s net worth was invested in Puerto Rico government bond funds, according to the documents. Ramos was the boxer’s financial adviser for years while working at many of the largest brokerages in Puerto Rico, including UBS and Wells Fargo.
“It’s a difficult situation, and we are addressing discussing the issue in the appropriate forums,” Trinidad told El Nuevo Dia newspaper on Friday. “Once again, the people of my beloved Puerto Rico have shown me great support and affection.”
“We regret this situation has wound up in the courts, and we reiterate once again that we are willing to find a mutually satisfactory solution for both parties. As Puerto Ricans, in Popular we have great affection for Felix ‘Tito’ Trinidad,” Popular Securities said in a statement.
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
TIGHT FINISH: Napoli only needed to do the same as or better than Inter, who won their game against Como 2-0 on the same day, leaving Napoli with a one-point lead The two players who Antonio Conte wanted more than any others secured Napoli their second Serie A title in three years on Friday. Scott McTominay scored with an acrobatic bicycle kick before halftime and Romelu Lukaku doubled the lead with a solo goal after the break in the decisive 2-0 home win over Cagliari. Conte became the first coach to win the Italian championship with three different teams. “Everyone contributed to this — but the coach most of all,” Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo said. “Napoli needed him to get back on top. He’s phenomenal.” Comparing it to his three Serie A titles won
The journey of Taiwan’s badminton mixed doubles duo Ye Hong-wei and Nicole Chan at the Malaysia Masters in Kuala Lumpur came to an end in the semi-finals yesterday after they suffered a 2-0 loss to China’s Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping. Ye, 25, and Chan, 20, teamed up last year and are currently ranked No. 23 in the world. The Taiwanese shuttlers took on China’s second seeds in the mixed doubles event, but proved no match for Feng and Huang, losing the match 10-21, 7-21. In the first half of the first game, the pairings were neck and neck at 6-7 until Ye
SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte has dragged the team back from disaster and restored them to the top of Italian Serie A, but his future at the Scudetto winners is in doubt even after a triumphant season. The fiery 55-year-old has exceeded preseason expectations and bolstered his reputation as a serial winner by guiding Napoli to their fourth Scudetto, and second in three seasons. However, he might well be on his way in the summer after just one season at the helm as his charged relationship with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has simmered throughout the campaign. Conte has said
RSS