Investor Loss Recovery from Startup Financial Misrepresentation: Lessons from the eFishery Case
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.0805/rk6zyx92Keywords:
Investor Recovery, Financial Misrepresentation, Startup, Corporate Liability, eFisheryAbstract
This study examined legal recovery for investors harmed by financial-statement misrepresentation in private startups, using eFishery as a regulatory lesson. Normative legal research was conducted through statutory, conceptual, case, and comparative approaches. The study found that investor losses must be classified as direct transactional losses, reflective corporate losses, criminal-victim losses, or insolvency claims because each category produces different standing and remedies. Indonesian law provides fragmented routes through contract, tort, company law, criminal restitution, anti-money-laundering asset recovery, and insolvency. The study proposes an integrated model based on early forensic preservation, claimant classification, coordinated parallel proceedings, loss-causation analysis, and cross-border enforcement. It recommends proportionate audited disclosure and board-level integrity controls for late-stage private startups whose fundraising and stakeholder impact have become substantial.
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