ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
CFTC Recently Awards $8 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. Through the CFTC Whistleblower Program, qualified whistleblowers are eligible to receive monetary awards of 10-30% of the funds collected by the CFTC in the enforcement action aided by their disclosure. Under the program’s related action provisions, whistleblowers are also eligible to receive awards based upon funds collected in actions brought by other agencies if their whistleblowing also contributed to their success.
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.
Recent CFTC Whistleblower Award
Since issuing its first award in 2014, the CFTC has awarded approximately $123 million to whistleblowers. One recent award totaled $8 million where the whistleblower’s information led to multiple law enforcement actions.[1] According to the CFTC announcement, the whistleblower voluntarily provided the CFTC with original information about derivatives market participants who deceived clients about key aspects of trades.
“This is an important whistleblower whose information led multiple regulators to bring multiple enforcement actions,” said Director of Enforcement Ian McGinley. “The whistleblower’s assistance enabled the CFTC and other agencies to more efficiently investigate and prosecute the misconduct.” According to the CFTC, the whistleblower “provided direct evidence of not only the whistleblower’s own intent in the relevant transactions, but also the whistleblower’s knowledge and observations about clients, co-workers, and senior leadership at the liable entity or entities.” “This ultimately saved substantial time and resources for staff and resulted in a far stronger and more triable case in the event of litigation,” the agency further states.
“Based on the whistleblower’s involvement in the underlying conduct, the whistleblower provided extremely valuable insider information at a critical time during the investigations,” said Whistleblower Office Director Brian Young.
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.
