$175 Million Lie: How Charlie Javice Fooled JPMorgan

A 32-year-old French American, Charlie Javice, popularly known for her own company, Frank, is now going to jail for fraud. She faked a company to defraud JP Morgan and got caught, found guilty, and is now headed to serve 7 years in prison. JP Morgan, being such a big bank, fell for it and paid around $175 million. It is said that she feels bad and cried, apologising. But will this compensate for the crime committed? Why was JP Morgan careless? So, what’s her story? What did she fake about? For all that, learn more.

Who Is Charlie Javice, and What Happened?

• Charlie Javice is a passionate entrepreneur. She was 24 years old when she started her online business, Frank.
• It was a company that aimed to help college students complete the complex U.S. financial aid application form (for college).
• The idea was so fascinating to JP Morgan that it saw Frank as a good value addition.
• Let’s go back to 2021, JP Morgan acquired Frank for $175 million. The purchase was a strategic move by JPMorgan. It sought to obtain the students’ data (in millions) to expand its customer base.

Here’s the big catch: those millions didn’t exist. 

How She Pulled It Off?

• JPMorgan, as part of due diligence, wanted proof of Frank’s customer base before buying it, as any company would.
• Javice understood the gravity of the situation and asked her company engineer to fake it. The engineer was brave enough to refuse the idea and warned that it was against the law.
• Ignoring all the warnings, Javice went ahead and hired an outside data scientist to create a “synthetic dataset” (in short, a fake one).
• A full-fledged list of famous names and information on millions of students was ready.
• The act convinced JPMorgan that Frank is genuine, with 4.25 million users, when in reality, it only had around 300,000.

Javice Vs JPMorgan – The Trial and Sentence

• Finally, in March 2025, after careful consideration, a New York jury found Javice guilty of fraud.
• Today, September 30, 2025, the U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein sentenced her to 85 months (just over 7 years) in prison.
• However, the prosecutors demanded 12 years, calling the act an “audacious” and “greedy” crime.
• In response, the judge said that she had no criminal history and had done some good work for charities and her family. That’s the reason why she was exempted a little.

Javice in Court

• Charlie Javice is almost 33 years old and has paid her due apologies to JPMorgan, Frank’s investors, and employees.
• She admitted in court that she, in fact, committed that crime, saying that she made terrible choices at 28 and claimed that it was a “collapse in character.”
• She even cried in court, addressing her parents. Apparently, she deeply regrets her mistake and will do so every day. 

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StartupTalky- Business News, Insights and StoriesSarika Anand