Current and former NFL players including five quarterbacks filed a lawsuit today against UBS Securities and former executives of Pay By Touch alleging fraud and negligent misrepresentation.

According to the complaint filed, “UBS Securities touted the Company (Pay By Touch) to investors as providing secure, convenient electronic transaction solutions for businesses and consumers through biometric authentication services and payment processing services.” Investors were told that its new unique payment system would reduce fraud, reduce payment transaction times, strengthen customer loyalty programs, and increase sales volume.

To fund the Company’s enormous capital requirements, UBS raised money for Pay By Touch through private offerings from prominent hedge funds, venture capitalists, and private investors. At least $300 million was invested in Pay By Touch during its short history. UBS received millions of dollars in placement fees.

“Defendants also falsely represented that they had disclosed all material risks to investors, and at the same time, UBS stated that they had not investigated the truth of their misrepresentations. The intent of the scheme was to induce Plaintiffs to rely on the misrepresentations and omissions and to invest in Pay By Touch,” the complaint alleges.

The suit alleges that the founder of Pay By Touch, John Rogers, had a string of run-ins with the law in his past. Rogers’ legal troubles included criminal misconduct, tax liens and civil judgements. Rogers was arrested for domestic assault and also had restraining orders on him. Rogers spent time in jail.

The suit says the former executives of Pay By Touch and UBS Securities also tried to withhold from investors, the findings of a confidential Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) report. The FDIC investigated the payment processing facility of Pay By Touch and concluded that its management had allowed serious problems to persist. Yet, despite knowing about these findings, the former executives of Pay By Touch and UBS Securities continued to hide the investigation from investors and instead suggested that no investigation had ever occurred. “Incredibly, Defendants told investors that they could be subject to investigation by a regulatory body regarding its payment processing facility, but decided not to reveal that they had been investigated or been told that they might not be able to process payments with federally-insured institutions.”

The fraud lawsuit was filed in San Francisco Superior Court by Joseph Cotchett of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy of Burlingame and William Parish of Stockton.