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CFTC Enforcement Actions

					
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is the United States agency with primary responsibility for enforcing the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and regulating commodity futures and related markets. Whistleblowers with knowledge of violations of laws and regulations enforced by the CFTC can submit a claim under the CFTC Whistleblower Reward Program, and may be eligible to receive a monetary reward and protection against retaliation by employers.


Below are summaries of recent CFTC settlements or successful enforcement actions. If you believe you have information about fraud which could give rise to a CFTC enforcement action and claim under the CFTC Whistleblower Reward Program, please contact us to speak with one of our experienced whistleblower attorneys.

				

			

			
						
					
			

	
		
		

			

				
				
CFTC Makes $4 Million Whistleblower Award

				
Posted  11/14/24
								

				 
				
pile of money
				 				On November 12, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced a $4 million award to two whistleblowers under the CFTC Whistleblower Program.  With this award, the agency has now issued roughly $390 million in whistleblower awards since its first award under the program in 2014.  These awards have been associated with more than $3.2 billion in monetary sanctions.

The award follows a flurry of...				 
				 				
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December 20, 2023

				 Avinash Singh and Highrise Advantage, LLC will pay over $100 million in restitution and civil penalties and are permanently banned from registering with the CFTC and from trading on any registered entity. Despite bringing in almost $58 million from investors and feeder funds, Singh and Highrise used less than $2.5 million on forex trades and used over $25 million on personal expenses and to make payments on their Ponzi-like scheme. CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
													  Ponzi Schemes, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
December 14, 2023

				 Freepoint Commodities LLC will pay more than $98 million in civil penalties and disgorgement for improperly obtaining and trading on material non-public information. Freepoint paid millions in bribes to government officials in Brazil to obtain highly confidential information related to the purchase and sale of fuel oil. Certain members of Freepoint's oil trading team knew of and took steps to conceal the fraud by using code words, fake names, and private email addresses, all to gain unlawful competitive advantages in oil products trading. DOJ; CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Bribery and Bid-Rigging, 
													  FCPA, 
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
													  Market Manipulation and Trading Violations, 
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Regulatory Violations, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
November 15, 2023

				 Phillip Galles and the entities he controlled—Tyche Asset Management LLC, Tyche Master Fund Ltd, Tyche Asset Trade LLC, Tyche Offshore Fund Ltd., Tyche Onshore Fund LP, Tyche PML Master Fund Ltd., Tyche PML Onshore Fund LP, Tyche Onshore Fund GP LLC, and Tyche Asset Trade LLC—will pay over $5.3 million in restitution and a nearly $16 million penalty for violating CFTC regulations governing commodity pools and for making false and misleading statements to the National Futures Association. Gales convinced investors he was a hedge fund magnate and claimed his Tyche entities achieved returns of over 200%, which he attributed to sophisticated technology and trading strategies. The majority of investors' funds, however, were not used to place trades but rather to fund Galles' lavish lifestyle and carry out his Ponzi scheme. CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
													  Ponzi Schemes, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
October 23, 2023

				 Ceres Global Ag Corp. has been ordered to pay $3 million to settle charges of attempting to manipulate the price of oats futures contracts in 2016 and 2017.  According to the CFTC, a former senior official directed employees to manipulate its short position in order to affect the futures price.  CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
October 12, 2023

				 Trans Union LLC and its subsidiary, TransUnion Rental Screening Solutions, Inc. (TURSS), have agreed to pay $15 million to settle charges of violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failing to ensure the accuracy of information included in tenant background screening reports, thus hampering the ability of consumers to obtain housing.  Some of the failures included reporting developments in the same eviction proceeding as if they were from more than one eviction, mischaracterizing the nature of certain information, and failing to accurately report eviction outcomes.  CFPB; FTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Misrepresentations, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 29, 2023

				 Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC has been ordered to pay $3 million to settle charges of failing to maintain adequate supervisory systems and controls, in connection with a 2017 malfunction.  Additionally, Goldman allegedly omitted material information regarding the malfunction when responding to a CFTC request for information on how customer orders were executed.  CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Financial and Investment Fraud, 
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 29, 2023

				 Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and Bank of America and Merrill Lynch have been ordered to pay $30 million, $15 million, and $8 million respectively in connection with a variety of swap dealer failures.  Goldman Sachs failed to diligently supervise a wide range of its swap dealer activities, some of them since 2013, and failed to accurately or timely report a significant portion of its swap data.  J.P. Morgan underreported or misreported over 40 million swap transactions.  Bank of America and Merrill Lynch underreported or misreported almost 4 million swap transactions.  CFTC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Financial Institution Fraud, 
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 29, 2023

				 Interactive Brokers Corp., an introducing broker, and Interactive Brokers LLC, a futures commission merchant, has been ordered to pay $20 million to the CFTC and $35 million to the SEC to resolve charges of failing to maintain and preserve records.  The records included communications through unapproved channels, such as text and WhatsApp, which employees at all levels used and which the company failed to maintain and preserve.  The SEC also resolved charges against other firms for similar misconduct, including Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. ($15 million); William Blair & Company LLC and William Blair Investment Management LLC ($10 million); Nuveen Securities LLC ($8.5 million); Fifth Third Securities Inc. ($8 million); and Perella Weinberg Partners LP, Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Securities LLC, and Perella Weinberg Partners Capital Management LP ($2.5 million).  CFTC; SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Financial Institution Fraud, 
													  Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, 
													  SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


											

						

								

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