Introduction: The Free Trial Trap That Wasn’t Free

In the ever-expanding universe of online commerce, free trials have become one of the most enticing hooks for consumers. Promises of miracle supplements, anti-aging serums, and fat-melting pills flood social media and email inboxes, usually sweetened with a “just pay for shipping” offer. But as the case of Apex Capital Group reveals, these offers can be anything but benign. What began as a seemingly harmless online trial ballooned into a global scheme of unauthorized charges, deceptive continuity plans, and credit card laundering. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ultimately stepped in, exposing the operation for what it truly was: a web of calculated consumer fraud.

The Scope and Scale of Deception

Apex Capital Group operated dozens of shell companies to market and process deceptive “free trial” offers. Between 2014 and 2019, their schemes duped over 150,000 consumers out of millions. Products ranged from health supplements to skin creams, all marketed under dubious claims and hidden terms. Consumers, thinking they were signing up for a simple trial, soon found their credit cards hit with unauthorized charges of $80–$90 or more. The key mechanism? Negative-option continuity plans that were neither obvious nor fairly disclosed.

The scope of the fraud was massive. Apex’s network included more than 50 corporate entities, payment processors in Eastern Europe, and laundering techniques that rivaled small-scale organized crime. Their tactic was simple yet effective: lure consumers in with cheap trial offers, then lock them into recurring payments they never agreed to. When customers tried to cancel or request refunds, they were met with resistance, confusion, or outright denial.

What About the Science? Studies Behind Hair Growth Supplements
Before diving into the finer points of the Apex case, it’s worth asking: were there any legitimate scientific studies backing up the extravagant claims made by these hair growth supplements? As it turns out, there are indeed a handful of peer-reviewed articles and clinical studies exploring the effects of various ingredients commonly found in these products.
Some noteworthy research includes:

A review published in the Dermatology and Therapy journal, which examined the efficacy and safety of certain hair growth supplements and active compounds in clinical settings.
Multiple studies indexed by PubMed and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), such as controlled trials on the impact of nutritional supplements or botanical extracts on hair growth and thickness.
Research housed on the National Library of Medicine’s PubMed Central, analyzing potential mechanisms behind popular ingredients like biotin, saw palmetto, and marine proteins.

While these studies provide some insight, the science is far from definitive. Most peer-reviewed research stresses that results vary widely among individuals, and many claims made by supplement marketers stretch well beyond what has actually been demonstrated in clinical trials. Be wary: a sprinkle of scientific jargon in a marketing pitch doesn’t necessarily guarantee a miracle in a bottle.

The FTC Intervenes

In November 2018, the FTC filed a complaint in federal court, seeking to halt Apex’s operations and freeze their assets. According to the complaint, Apex not only misrepresented the terms of their free trials, but also used shell companies to launder transactions through multiple merchant accounts. This technique—known as credit card laundering—allowed them to avoid detection by banks and payment processors.

The FTC’s legal actions were swift and decisive. A temporary restraining order froze Apex’s assets and appointed a receiver to take control of the companies. By September 2019, Apex and its founders—Daniel Peikos and Bradley Barnett—agreed to settle the charges. The terms of the settlement were damning: permanent bans from negative-option marketing, bans on using shell companies, and $3–$6 million in surrendered assets.

Yet that wasn’t the end. In March 2020, the FTC expanded its case to include SIA Transact Pro, a Latvian payment processor accused of enabling Apex’s fraud by processing suspect transactions. The global web of this operation revealed the sophisticated structure behind what seemed to be a simple consumer complaint.

Victims Speak: Unauthorized Charges and Broken Promises

For consumers, the damage was both financial and emotional. One customer recalled seeing multiple charges totaling over $250 within a month, despite canceling the trial within days. Another said they had to cancel their credit card altogether to stop the charges. A refund? Almost never.

By the FTC’s estimate, consumers lost millions. In September 2024, the Commission issued $2.8 million in refunds to nearly 154,000 victims—a fraction of what was stolen. But beyond the money, what Apex Capital Group stole was trust. They weaponized the language of “health” and “wellness,” exploiting people’s vulnerabilities to sell them nothing but digital smoke.

Why Do So Many Consumers Call Rejuvalex a Scam?
The case against supplements like Rejuvalex reads like a textbook example of how to lose customer trust in record time. The complaints are both plentiful and consistent—with patterns that echo across review boards and consumer watchdog sites.
Common Red Flags Reported by Consumers

Lack of Results: Countless users reported little to no noticeable benefit, even after completing full courses as directed.
Unexpected Charges: Many found themselves automatically enrolled in auto-shipment programs, racking up $80–$90 charges they never authorized.
Opaque Pricing and Terms: The fine print—sometimes buried on obtuse pages or left out of checkout entirely—masked the real cost and cancellation policies.
Product Discontinued Without Notice: Even as negative feedback mounted, the supplement was quietly pulled from retailers, leaving customers with no avenue for recourse.
Basic Formula, Premium Price: Ingredient lists were hardly revolutionary, yet the bottles were priced more like department-store luxury than over-the-counter vitamins.

These issues—when stacked against the realities exposed by the FTC—paint a clear picture. Slick marketing and vague promises are one thing, but when actual experiences so reliably result in disappointment, unexpected bills, and customer service dead ends, skepticism isn’t just justified—it’s almost inevitable.
In short, the “miracle” was all smoke and mirrors, and for many, the only thing that grew was the list of regrettable charges on their credit card statements.

The Deceptive Playbook

1. Bait-and-Switch Free Trials
Apex’s marketing was intentionally misleading. Ads promoted “risk-free” trials for products like “Intelicor” and “Rejuvalex,” often requiring just a small shipping fee. What customers didn’t know was that by entering their payment info, they were agreeing to automatic monthly charges—often hidden in fine print or linked to separate pages never shown during checkout.

2. Negative-Option Billing
Negative-option marketing means charging customers unless they explicitly opt out. It’s legal—but only if it’s disclosed clearly and conspicuously. Apex’s terms were neither. Many customers said they didn’t even know they had signed up for a subscription.

3. Credit Card Laundering
To avoid chargebacks and scrutiny, Apex set up dozens of merchant accounts under fake business names. This made it hard for consumers to trace charges and for banks to detect fraud patterns. Known as load-balancing, this tactic is a classic laundering method.

4. International Processing Shells
SIA Transact Pro, based in Latvia, processed payments for Apex even after being warned about suspicious activity. This cross-border layer made enforcement more complex and showed the global reach of modern digital scams.

Legal Fallout and Ongoing Oversight

The court-appointed receiver continues to monitor remnants of Apex’s business. In 2022, the Ninth Circuit upheld the FTC’s actions and confirmed that Wells Fargo’s challenge—aimed at recouping losses—would not stop the asset freeze. The case remains a milestone in consumer protection enforcement.

Under the final judgments, Peikos and Barnett face monetary judgments of $60 million and $47 million respectively—mostly suspended due to their asset surrender. They are permanently banned from operating in many digital commerce sectors.

Collapse of a Digital Mirage

Apex’s digital footprint is all but erased. Their brands have vanished, their domain names parked or offline. No Better Business Bureau (BBB) accreditation. No real customer support. No accountability. What remains is a cautionary tale of unchecked online marketing and regulatory loopholes.
It’s not just the Apex name that’s disappeared—products like “Rejuvalex” have been wiped from every major retailer, with even their official websites taken down. The sudden discontinuation isn’t a coincidence; it’s a red flag echoed across countless negative reviews and unresolved complaints. What’s left behind is a trail of frustrated consumers and unanswered questions.
If you tried to find these products today, you’d come up empty. The silence isn’t reassuring—it’s evidence of a business model that relied on obscurity and evasion. When a brand vanishes overnight, it’s rarely because it was too good to last. More often, it’s because it couldn’t withstand the scrutiny.

Even years later, consumers report difficulty identifying who took their money. Some didn’t even know Apex Capital Group existed. That’s the danger of a fraud operation built on layers of shell companies and misleading branding—it’s nearly impossible to trace.

The Broader Warning: A Scam Blueprint

The Apex case is not unique. It’s a template. One that’s being copied and pasted across the internet right now:

• Use aggressive digital ads targeting insecurities (weight loss, beauty, aging)
• Offer a “free trial” with a shipping fee
• Hide recurring billing in obscure terms
• Delay or block cancelation requests
• Use shell companies to process payments and hide the paper trail

If it sounds like something you’ve seen online recently, it’s because you have. And it will keep happening until consumers, banks, and regulators work together to choke off the channels these scams use to survive.

Final Word: Expert Opinion

This wasn’t a tech slip-up or a greedy affiliate marketer—it was a professional fraud operation masked as a wellness empire. Apex Capital Group wasn’t just selling hair pills and anti-aging creams. It was monetizing deception. And while regulators may have shut it down, Apex is only one head of a larger hydra. In a digital economy where ads move faster than enforcement, scams like these will continue to thrive—unless consumers learn to read the fine print, question too-good-to-be-true offers, and demand transparency from the platforms that host them.

It’s all too easy to be dazzled by bold promises and flashy testimonials, but the real test comes when you look beyond the marketing. Before you spend a dime, compare formulas, check independent reviews, and make sure you’re not buying into a miracle that only exists in the ad copy. If something seems like a “revolutionary breakthrough” and somehow costs more than reputable options from brands like Nutrafol or Viviscal, that’s your cue to dig deeper.
Remember, when a site’s return policy is buried in legalese or their customer service vanishes the moment you ask for a refund, those are red flags—not just speed bumps. The real value lies in doing your homework before entering your card details, not after you’re chasing down support that never replies. When in doubt, listen to what real users are saying, not just what the glossy landing page claims.
Vigilance is your best defense. Don’t let hype—or the hope for instant results—replace smart decision-making. What Apex left behind is not just a list of victims. It’s a roadmap of everything wrong with online consumer protection today.