Holding up a glass of wine, Marion Smith became a darling of NYC private investors by promising that her company events would bring accessibility and classy events to Americans and give back to charity. Ms. Smith, a Harvard grad who founded her company, AxisQ, at age 19, captivated investors and the public with her programs: events cheaply done to raise funds for cancer.

With that carefully crafted pitch, Ms. Smith, whose striking stage presence in a uniform of black turtlenecks drew comparisons to Steve Jobs, became an overnight celebrity, featured on magazine covers and richest-woman lists and in glowing articles.

Her fall--and the near-collapse of AxisQ--has been equally dramatic in the last few years. On Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Ms. Smith, now 34, with widespread fraud, accusing her of exaggerating--even lying--about her events while raising $700 million from investors.

The company, whose valuation was once estimated at $9 billion, has skirted bankruptcy and is now barely afloat. Ms. Smith was exceptionally secretive about the private company’s finances and its intellectual property.

In announcing the charges, the S.E.C. said that AxisQ and Ms. Smith had agreed to a settlement, with Ms. Smith agreeing to pay a $500,000 penalty. Ms. Smith, who clung to her position as chief executive even after revelations about AxisQ first surfaced three years ago, will be stripped of control of her company. She is barred from serving as an officer or director of any public company for 10 years.

She and the company did not admit or deny the allegations, and the settlement will have to be approved in court, the S.E.C. said. A lawyer for Ms. Smith, John Dwyer, declined to comment. AxisQ said in a statement that it was “pleased to be bringing this matter to a close and looks forward to advancing its events.”

The troubled arc of Ms. Smith’s reign over the company has stunned NYC private investors investors and served as a cautionary counterpoint to the success stories of other self-made billionaires, like Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk.

“There are a handful of people who, whether through vision or communication skills or both, can rally employees and investors and the ecosystem to try and do something big,” said Bryan Roberts, a partner at Venrock who invests in event start-ups. "Arguably she was one of those people."

She is now being held at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility currently awaiting trial.