UPDATE: Class-action suit filed against missing adviser

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with a statement from Matson Money

Lawyers on Wednesday filed a class-action suit against a missing investment adviser alleging that he bilked about 100 people in a Ponzi scheme.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia against Christopher W. Burns, 37, of Berkeley Lake, as well as Matson Money, Inc., a company “to whom Burns referred all of his clients,” according to lawyers.

Attorneys from The Doss Firm and Gaslowitz Frankel are asking that Burns be ordered to repay their clients, but do not put a dollar figure on the request.

“Burns appeared to be a charismatic, competent and trustworthy family man,” said attorney Jason Doss. “We now know that Burns was at the center of a Ponzi scheme.”

Reached by phone, a representative of Matson Money declined comment on Wednesday. But Thursday, the firm issued a statement denying involvement in any wrongdoing.

“Matson Money has never sold, offered or provided custody for promissory notes, particularly those at the heart of the allegations against Christopher Burns,” the statement said.

Matson Money, founded in 1991, has $8 billion in assets under management, according to the company’s website. The firm lists among its advisers Nobel-winning economist Harry Markowitz and supply-side economist Arthur Laffer.

The lawsuit identifies Matson as Ohio-based, but it also has offices in Arizona.

Burns was reported missing Sept. 24, the day his abandoned vehicle was discovered.

Earlier this week, a warrant for Burns' arrest was issued. He’s wanted on a mail fraud charge, according to a statement earlier this week by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the office of the U.S. Attorney.

Burns is founder of Dynamic Money and a podcast of the same name. He purchased air time from WSB radio for a weekly radio show and had appeared a number of times on Fox News programs.