Ascend CapVentures, Inc.

Also known as: Ascend Ecom, Ascend Ecommerce, ACV Partners, ACV, Accelerated eCom Ventures, Ethix Capital by Ascend, ACV Nexus.

The FTC sued this business-opportunity scheme in September 2024 under Operation AI Comply, alleging its "cutting edge" AI tools would earn buyers thousands a month in passive income from online storefronts. The complaint puts losses at at least $25 million. The operators were permanently banned in June 2025.

Documented. Subject of a regulatory action, lawsuit, or other official proceeding on the public record.

What the FTC alleged

On 25 September 2024 the FTC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, case number 2:24-cv-07660-SPG-JPR, against an online business-opportunity scheme it said falsely claimed its “cutting edge” AI-powered tools would let buyers quickly earn thousands of dollars a month in passive income by opening online storefronts.

The complaint states the scheme defrauded consumers of at least $25 million.

It was one of five actions announced that day under Operation AI Comply, the FTC’s sweep against companies it said had “seized on the hype surrounding AI”.

Eight trading names since 2021

The FTC names William Michael Basta and Jeremy Kenneth Leung as the operators, and records that the scheme has run under a number of names since 2021:

Ascend Ecom
Ascend Ecommerce
Ascend CapVentures
ACV Partners
ACV
Accelerated eCom Ventures
Ethix Capital by Ascend
ACV Nexus

Eight trading names for one operation is the most useful single fact in this entry. A buyer researching any one of those names in isolation would find very little, which is generally why an operation carries that many.

How it worked

According to the complaint, buyers were charged tens of thousands of dollars to start stores on platforms including Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, and TikTok, and required to spend tens of thousands more on inventory.

Ascend’s advertising claimed it led the ecommerce field, using proprietary software and artificial intelligence to maximise clients’ success, and promised stores producing five-figure monthly income by the second year. For nearly all buyers, the FTC says, those gains never materialised.

Outcome

Under a proposed order filed in June 2025, Basta and Leung and their corporate entities were permanently banned from selling business opportunities and business coaching, prohibited from making misleading or unsubstantiated earnings claims, and required to turn over substantial assets for consumer redress.

What is not established

A complaint states the government’s case rather than a finding of fact, and a settlement resolves allegations without any admission of wrongdoing. No defence has been weighed here.

We have not yet contacted the named operators for comment. When we do, the attempt and any response will appear on this entry.

Sources

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Right of reply

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Identity