"Director Carl Eric Rinsch made so many failed, seven-figure option bets after Netflix wired him $11 million that his broker at Wells Fargo tried - and failed - to stop him, a New York fraud jury heard on Tuesday. "I can afford to lose the money," Rinsch said, according to testimony by his former Wells Fargo advisor, Ronald See. And when the brokerage hit the brakes - limiting him to $250,000 per transaction - the show developer was undaunted."
"On March 30, 2019, just three weeks after receiving the $11 million, Rinsch instructed See, of Wells Fargo Advisors, to wire his remaining $8.5 million to Citibank so he could establish a new brokerage account with Charles Schwab. "They won't put restrictions on me there," Rinsch wrote See in a letter shown to jurors. Rinsch, 48, is on trial in federal court in Manhattan, fighting charges that he had no right to use the $11 million Netflix sent him on anything other than "White Horse.""
"Defense lawyers counter that the $11 million was actually Rinsch's contractually-promised payment for having completed principal photography, and was his money to spend as he pleased. Either way, testimony on Tuesday by two of Rinsch's former financial advisors showed that he was eager to spend the cash prosecutors say the director had quickly moved into his Wells Fargo account. The streamer wired Rinsch the $11 million on March 6, 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic halted film production worldwide."
Netflix wired $11 million to director Carl Erik Rinsch amid halted production. Prosecutors allege the funds were restricted to the sci-fi series White Horse, which had already received significant financing. Rinsch then placed numerous seven-figure options trades, prompting his Wells Fargo broker to impose transaction limits that he sought to evade by moving funds to a new brokerage. Advisors testified that Rinsch displayed eagerness to spend the money and said he could afford losses. Rinsch contends the $11 million was a contractual payment for completed principal photography and therefore his to spend.
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