Oraclum Capital founder Vuk Vukovic charged with fraud for allegedly inflating hedge fund returns

Vuk Vukovic, the founder and chief investment officer of Oraclum Capital, has been charged with securities fraud and wire fraud by federal prosecutors in Manhattan. The charges, unsealed on September 11, allege that Vukovic systematically lied to investors about his hedge fund’s performance, inflating returns through falsified financial documents. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The numbers that didn’t add up The Orca Bason Fund, launched in late 2022 under the Oraclum Capital umbrella, marketed itself as a vehicle for high returns driven by a novel approach to social media data. The fund reportedly claimed gross returns of 51% over two years. According to the complaint, a prospective investor in June 2025 received statements showing a 38.44% return. The actual figure from administrator records was 16.39%. More broadly, the overstatement of specific returns cited in the complaint ran about 10 percentage points higher than what administrators had on file. Prosecutors allege the fraud dates back to at least 2024, with Vukovic distributing falsified monthly statements and brokerage records that reported inflated net asset values. A search, a court date, an...