Bill Wells (William Paul Wells)

Bill Wells (William Paul Wells)
Bill Wells (William Paul Wells), President of the U.S.-based company Pope Asset Management, LLC

Biographical Information

William Paul Wells (Bill Wells) is a U.S. citizen, born in 1960. At the age of twenty, he completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of Mississippi. Coming from a poor family, he paid for his education through a scholarship he had previously received. In 1985, he earned a master’s degree in finance from Dartmouth College, at the Amos Tuck School of Business.

Bill Wells’s first place of employment was Goldman Sachs, where he worked as a manager in the private wealth management division. At Goldman Sachs, Bill Wells advanced to the position of Vice President.

In 2000, Pope Asset Management, LLC was founded in Memphis, Tennessee. It is a private company established by William Paul Wells. Its main areas of activity are investment consulting and asset management. Twenty years later, William Paul Wells became President of Pope Asset Management, LLC. The company manages more than $100 million in assets and has a staff of three employees.

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Bill Wells’s Business Activities

Bill Wells conducts active business in Ukraine with the pro-Russian, sanctioned oligarch Vadym Novynskyi. Through Pope Asset Management, he owns nearly 23 million shares of Enwell Energy, whose ultimate beneficiary is Novynskyi.

Pope Asset Management, in turn, includes hedge funds in its structure: Pope Investment LLC and Pope Investment II LLC. The funds’ clients are individuals (U.S. citizens) and two charitable organizations. Bill Wells holds the position of director in both funds.

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Bill Wells’s Business with Enwell Energy

Enwell Energy is a publicly traded company registered in the United Kingdom. It is part of the Smart Energy group, which in turn belongs to the Smart Holding investment group. Enwell Energy is engaged in projects for the exploration and development of hydrocarbon deposits.

Before Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, it was one of five private gas-producing companies operating in Ukraine, producing more than 1 million cubic meters of gas per day. Hydrocarbon reserves at Smart Energy’s gas production assets were estimated in the C1+C2 categories as follows: gas — 22.633 billion cubic meters, condensate — 3.722 million tons.

The Smart Holding investment group belongs to the notorious pro-Russian oligarch Vadym Novynskyi. In May 2023, the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv imposed an arrest on the corporate rights of 72 companies, including Enwell Energy, linked to Novynskyi’s assets and controlled through Smart Holding or offshore companies.

Bill Wells is a shareholder of Enwell Energy. His company, Pope Asset Management, owns nearly 23 million shares, representing almost 7% of the total. Another shareholder is Smart Energy (CY) Limited, which holds nearly 83%, or about 265 million shares. The total number of issued shares by early summer 2025 exceeded 320 million.

In August 2025, Bill Wells (William P Wells), as one of Enwell Energy’s shareholders, initiated arbitration proceedings against Ukraine, despite active hostilities in the country and the state’s sanctions policy against the pro-Russian oligarch Novynskyi.

According to Bill Wells, Ukraine should not interfere in the activities of assets belonging to its sanctioned citizens. He also argued that Ukraine should not have terminated gas production licenses based on sanctions against the company’s beneficial owner, Vadym Novynskyi. Despite the war and sanctions, Bill Wells demands the restoration of these licenses.

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How Is Bill Wells Connected to Enwell Energy?

Bill Wells’s company, Pope Asset Management, manages its nearly 23 million Enwell Energy shares through the insurance fund Annuity and Life Re (Holdings) Ltd, listed on the Bermuda Stock Exchange.

The shares of Annuity and Life Re (Holdings) Ltd are owned by one of Wells’s hedge funds, namely Pope Investment II LLC. This fact is confirmed by an audit report from the global auditor Grant Thornton:

According to the report, most investments have been written off. Annuity and Life Re (Holdings) Ltd constantly conducts transactions with related parties, buying and selling Enwell Energy shares, thereby causing losses to itself.

In the dividend section of the same 2024 report, it is stated that more than $4 million was paid in 2023 and held in a U.S. bank account. However, information on payments to investors is absent, and it is unknown where the funds were directed.

The 2023 financial statements show a similar situation: dividends of more than $4.5 million were held in a U.S. bank account but also left the insurance fund in an unknown direction.

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Purchase of Enwell Energy Shares

In May 2023, 14,608,000 shares of Enwell Energy plc were purchased at a price of $0.3732 per share for a total of $5,451,930. Of these, 11,857,165 shares were bought from company shareholders for $4,425,094, and the rest from interested parties affiliated with the shareholders.

In June 2023, 12,838,600 shares of Enwell Energy plc were sold at $0.19 per share for a total of $2,439,334. Of these, 10,087,165 shares were sold to company shareholders for $1,916,561, and the rest to interested parties affiliated with shareholders. The transaction resulted in a loss of $2,352,032.

The management company withdrew the received dividends from Annuity and Life Re (Holdings) Ltd through self-dealing transactions involving Enwell Energy shares, causing direct losses of more than $2 million. These transactions took place in May–June 2023. In addition to the losses, there is evidence of securities manipulation and withdrawal of funds without informing investors.

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Manipulation of Bill Wells’s Hedge Funds

Pope Management manages two hedge funds: Pope Investment LLC and Pope Investment II LLC.

Both funds were created for a fixed term of no more than 10 years. However, Pope Investment LLC, established in 2005 with a liquidation date in 2015, is still operating. Pope Investment II LLC, founded in 2007 and scheduled for liquidation in 2017, operates similarly.

Notably, the reports of both funds contain no information on investor returns for more than 20 years. At the same time, lawsuits have been initiated against both funds in the United States, including against Bill Wells.

Legal Cases:

• Marilyn Abrams Living Trust v. Pope Investments II LLC

The investor demanded access to corporate documents, which the fund refused to provide. The court ruled in favor of the investor and ordered the disclosure of documents and compensation.

• China Yida Holding Co. v. Pope Investments LLC

The investor William Paul Wells demanded a valuation of shares after a merger. After a series of hearings, a Nevada court granted the investor the right to a valuation.

• Belmont Partners, LLC v. Pope Investments II LLC

Belmont Partners accused the fund of fraud related to investments in a Chinese company. The motion to dismiss was denied, and proceedings are ongoing.

• Benda Pharmaceutical, Inc. v. Pope Investments LLC

Benda Pharmaceutical demanded explanations regarding unfulfilled obligations and subsequent financial losses.

• Borrelli Walsh Limited v. Pope Investments LLC

The lawsuit concerns non-payment of fees for investment transaction services. The court has not reached a final decision; the motion to dismiss was partially granted and partially denied.

• Kingboard Copper Foil Holdings Ltd v. Annuity & Life Re Ltd & Pope Asset Management LLC

Kingboard sued both the insurance fund and the hedge fund. The funds attempted to exert bias during settlement proceedings. The Supreme Court of Bermuda rejected the funds’ claim and ruled in favor of Kingboard Copper Foil Holdings Ltd.