A prominent Miami Beach businessman and philanthropist was charged with operating his grocery reseller business as a Ponzi scheme that the Securities and Exchange Commission said reached $900 million.

Nevin Shapiro, founder and chief executive of Capitol Investments Inc., was charged criminally with securities fraud and money laundering by federal prosecutors from the U.S. Department of Justice in New Jersey. The SEC separately filed civil charges against Mr. Shapiro, alleging violations of federal securities laws and claiming the fraud was as much as $900 million.