ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
CFTC Recently Awards $3 Million To Whistleblower
Cases Start With An Anonymous Tip From Whistleblower
Fraud In Commodities and Futures Trading
The U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) oversees trading in derivatives, commodities, options, futures, swaps, and currencies. See Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq. and 17 C.F.R. Part 1 et seq. In 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank), Pub. L. 111-203, established a whistleblower program within the CFTC to encourage individuals with information of trading fraud to report the fraud to the agency and potentially receive a reward if the agency recovers from the alleged wrongdoer. See 7 U.S.C. § 26 et seq. Fraudulent derivatives trading can occur in futures, options, commodities and currencies including virtual or digital currencies. If you have information of any form of commodities or options trading fraud call Evans Law Firm, Inc. We can assemble your information in the form required by the CFTC for investigation and possibly a reward if the agency completes a successful enforcement action including recovery of civil penalties or disgorgement of illegal gains. If you have information of any form of commodities, options or virtual currency trading fraud, call us today at (415)441-8669 or toll free at (888)503-8267.
About The CFTC Whistleblower Program
Since issuing its first award in 2014, the CFTC has awarded approximately $123 million to whistleblowers. One recent award totaled $3 million where the whistleblower’s information led to a largescale enforcement operation for fraudulent trading.[1] The CFTC issues awards related not only to the agency’s enforcement actions, but also in connection with actions brought by other domestic or foreign regulators if certain conditions are met. The Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), 7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq. and 17 C.F.R. Part 1 et seq., provides confidentiality protections for whistleblowers. The CFTC will not disclose any information that could reasonably be expected to reveal a whistleblower’s identity, except in limited circumstances. Whistleblowers are eligible to receive between 10 and 30 percent of the monetary sanctions collected. All whistleblower awards are paid from the CFTC Customer Protection Fund, which was established by Congress, and is financed entirely through monetary sanctions paid to the CFTC by violators of the CEA. No money is taken or withheld from injured customers to fund the program.
Tips And Covered Action Rewards
A CFTC case begins with a TCR (“Tip, Complaint, or Referral”) Form filed with the Commission. TCRs are also used to begin a whistleblower case before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for other securities law violations. Both the SEC and CFTC encourage whistleblowers seek counsel to assist them in the process of submitting a TCR form. This will ensure they take the proper steps to remain anonymous and qualify for a whistleblower award. Once the CFTC determines a fine or obtains any recovery based on the information contained in the TCR then submit a Form WB-APP with the CFTC to claim a reward for the information they provided that led to the successful enforcement action.
Contact Us
Ingrid M. Evans represents individuals with information of any form of trading fraud actionable before the CFTC and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. She can be reached at (415) 441-8669, or toll free at (888)503-8267 or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. Ingrid also represents whistleblowers in cases involving the False Claims Act, offshore tax avoidance schemes or other tax fraud before the Internal Revenue Service, and bank fraud under the Financial Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act (FIRREA/FIAFEA),
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the case in any way.
