SEC halts Melot’s Catering investment scheme

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ordered Melot’s Catering Services to stop illegally soliciting investments from the public.

Citing a 14 March order, the SEC said Wednesday its Enforcement and Investor Protection Department told the company, its owner Mary Rose Reales Ceprino, and their agents to immediately stop selling unregistered securities until they get proper approval.

The order also bars them from using social media for the scheme, moving money in their bank accounts, or selling any assets, to protect investors’ funds.

“The act of Melot’s Catering Services through Mary Rose Reales Ceprino and its agents in selling/offering unregistered securities operates as a fraud to the public which, if unrestrained, will likely cause grave injury or prejudice to the investing public,” the SEC order read.

“Unless restrained, the act of Melot’s Catering Services through Mary Rose Reales Ceprino and its agents in selling/offering unregistered securities constitutes a continuing violation of the provision of the SRC and the FCPA,” it added.

The SEC said Melot’s Catering had encouraged people to invest in its kitchen expansion and renovation, offering contracts with a minimum P50,000 investment and a promised 10 percent monthly return for six to 12 months.

The company is not registered as a corporation or partnership and had no license to sell securities.

The SEC had already warned the public in October 2025 against investing in any scheme offered by Melot’s Catering Services.