Market Manipulation and Trading Violations

November 6, 2017

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced the filing and simultaneous settlement of charges against Cargill, Inc. (Cargill), of Minnesota, for providing mid-market marks (marks) that concealed from counterparties and its swap data repository (SDR) its full mark-up on certain swaps, in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and Commission Regulations. Specifically, the CFTC Order finds that Cargill provided counterparties and the SDR inaccurate marks which had the effect of concealing up to ninety percent of Cargill’s mark-up. Cargill also failed to diligently supervise its employees in connection with these inaccurate marks, and in connection with inaccurate statements made to swap counterparties. In particular, the CFTC Order finds that Cargill provided marks that concealed its full mark-up because of a concern that providing accurate marks would reduce Cargill’s revenue. The CFTC Order requires Cargill to pay a $10 million civil monetary penalty, cease and desist from violating Section 4s(h)(1) of the CEA and Commission Regulations 23.431(a) and (d), 45.4(d)(2), and 166.3, as charged, and comply with certain remedial undertakings. CFTC

October 10, 2017

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today issued an Order filing and settling charges against Arab Global Commodities DMCC (AGC), a proprietary trading firm headquartered in Dubai, with several trading offices in India, for engaging in the disruptive trading practice of “spoofing” in the copper futures contract traded on the Commodity Exchange, Inc. (COMEX) between March and August 2016. The CFTC Order finds that AGC engaged in this activity through one of its employees (Trader A), who generally spoofed after business hours, when Trader A traded from home. The Order requires AGC to pay a $300,000 civil monetary penalty and to cease and desist from violating the Commodity Exchange Act’s prohibition against spoofing. CFTC

August 15, 2017

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today issued an Order filing and settling charges against Copersucar Trading A.V.V. (Copersucar), an Aruban corporation and a subsidiary of Copersucar S.A., the world’s largest sugar and ethanol company, based in São Paolo, Brazil, for executing prearranged, noncompetitive wash trades involving Sugar No. 11 futures Trade at Settlement (TAS) contracts traded on ICE Futures U.S., Inc. (ICE), a designated contract market. The Order requires that Copersucar pay a $300,000 civil monetary penalty. CFTC

August 7, 2017

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today issued an Order filing and settling charges against The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU) for engaging in multiple acts of spoofing in a variety of futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade, including futures contracts based on United States treasury notes and Eurodollars. The Order finds that BTMU engaged in this activity through one of its employees (Trader A), who accessed these markets through a trading platform from one of BTMU’s Tokyo offices. The Order requires BTMU to pay a $600,000 civil monetary penalty and to cease and desist from violating the Commodity Exchange Act’s prohibition against spoofing. The CFTC became aware of the conduct through BTMU’s voluntary self-reporting of the wrongdoing. CFTC

June 22, 2017

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced additional charges in an enforcement investigation involving the improper handling of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) by a Wall Street firm’s securities lending desk. The SEC’s order finds supervisory failures by Anthony Portelli, a former managing director and head of operations at broker-dealer ITG Inc.  Portelli supervised ITG’s securities lending operations and was responsible for the firm’s compliance with “pre-release agreements” for ADR transactions.  ADRs are U.S. securities that represent foreign shares of a foreign company.  Before obtaining a “pre-released ADR” to lend to a customer, brokers like ITG must own, or determine that a customer owns, the number of foreign shares that corresponds to the number of shares the ADR represents.  Under Portelli’s watch, personnel on ITG’s securities lending desk failed to take reasonable steps to determine whether the proper amounts of foreign shares were owned and held by ITG’s customers.  This failure opened up the possibility that the ADRs could be used improperly for short selling or dividend arbitrage. SEC

June 5, 2017

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged  a Salt Lake City-based brokerage firm with securities law violations related to its alleged practice of clearing transactions for microcap stocks that were used in manipulative schemes to harm investors. To help detect potential securities law and money laundering violations, broker-dealers are required to file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) that describe suspicious transactions that take place through their firms.  The SEC’s complaint alleges that Alpine Securities Corporation routinely and systematically failed to file SARs for stock transactions that it flagged as suspicious.  When it did file SARs, Alpine Securities allegedly frequently omitted the very information that formed the bases for Alpine knowing, suspecting, or having reason to suspect that a transaction was suspicious.  As noted in the complaint, guidance for preparing SARs from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) clearly states that “[e]xplaining why the transaction is suspicious is critical.” SEC

July 26, 2017

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today issued an Order filing and settling charges against Simon Posen of New York, New York for engaging in thousands of incidents of “spoofing” — bidding or offering with the intent to cancel the bid or offer before execution — in gold, silver, and copper futures contracts traded on the Commodity Exchange, Inc., and crude oil futures contracts traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange over a period spanning more than three years. Posen traded from home for his own account and was not employed by any corporate entity, according to the Order. The CFTC Order requires Posen to pay a $635,000 civil monetary penalty and to cease and desist from violating the Commodity Exchange Act’s prohibition against spoofing. The Order further permanently bans Posen from trading in any market regulated by the CFTC and from applying for registration or claiming exemption from registration with the CFTC in any capacity. CFTC

June 29, 2017

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced the filing and simultaneous settlement of charges against Rosenthal Collins Capital Markets, LLC, now known as DV Trading LLC(RCCM), of Chicago, Illinois, for engaging in illegal wash sales in order to generate rebates of exchange fees based upon increased trading volumes. The CFTC Order requires RCCM to pay a $5 million civil monetary penalty and cease and desist from violating Section 4c(a) of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and Commission Regulation 1.38(a), as charged.  A separate CFTC Order finds that former RCCM trader, Brandon Elsasser (Elsasser), entered illegal wash sales and requires him to pay a $200,000 civil monetary penalty, and orders him to cease and desist from violating CEA Section 4c(a) and Commission Regulation 1.38(a), as charged. CFTC