A whistleblower received an $8 million award from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for uncovering fraud—even though the agency deemed the whistleblower was culpable in the misconduct.
Aaron Nicodemus
Aaron Nicodemus is the Editor-in-Chief of Compliance Week. He previously worked as a reporter for Bloomberg Law and as business editor at the Telegram & Gazette in Worcester, Mass.
Email: aaron.nicodemus@complianceweek.com
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SEC, CFTC actively probe off-channel comms violations, top officials say
Two senior officials from the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission described how both agencies are committed to rooting out off-channel communications among registered entities for the long term.
CFTC orders Trafigura to pay $55M over fraud, impeding whistleblowers
Singapore-based commodity trading company Trafigura will pay $55 million to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to settle charges related to fraud, manipulation, and impeding whistleblower communications with the agency.
Washington state importer ordered to hire CCO in response to Lacey Act violations
A Washington state importer has been ordered by the Department of Justice to pay a $360,000 fine and hire a chief compliance officer after imported wood items the company claimed to be from Malaysia were found to be from China.
Ex-Synchronoss CFO fined, banned over SOX violations
The former chief financial officer at Synchronoss Technologies was fined a ban from the industry for widespread Sarbanes-Oxley Act violations.
Evolve Bank ordered by Fed to address AML, sanctions lapses
The Federal Reserve Board ordered an Arkansas bank that partnered with numerous financial technology companies to correct deficiencies in its anti-money laundering, sanctions, risk management, and consumer compliance programs.
Anson Funds, affiliate to pay $2.25M for fund disclosure violations
Registered investment adviser Anson Funds Management and exempt reporting adviser Anson Advisers will combine to pay more than $2 million for allegedly misleading investors about their short fund strategy and related recordkeeping violations.
CFTC’s Pham critical of agency stances on CCO liability, self-disclosure credit
Caroline Pham, a commissioner at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said compliance officers have a lot to worry about if they or their firms are subject to CFTC enforcement during her fireside chat at CW’s Financial Crimes Summit.
OCC’s Hsu encourages banks to apply guardrails to AI use
Warning of an “eventual reckoning” on artificial intelligence use by financial institutions, the acting head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said the industry should learn lessons on how similar disruptive technologies evolved from being helpful to dangerous.
‘Why us?’ SEC lists reasons it conducts examinations of broker-dealers
A risk alert from the Securities and Exchange Commission listed top reasons why a registered broker-dealer might be the subject of an examination.


