The legal representatives of Traders Global Group, operating as My Forex Funds, are seeking sanctions against the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). In a motion filed yesterday (Thursday), the lawyers allege that the regulator knowingly misrepresented facts and its “staff acted in bad faith.”

Sanctions against the CFTC

“Recognizing that sanctions are an extraordinary remedy, they are necessary here to condemn and redress the CFTC’s serious abuse of the ex parte process and its authority as a government enforcement agency,” the motion filed in a New Jersey court stated. As a part of the sanctions, the motion is "at a minimum" seeking "evidentiary hearing so that the CFTC’s pattern of misconduct and its effect on Defendants’ rights can be fully understood and redressed."

The motion, which is part of the ongoing litigation against My Forex Funds and its CEO, Murtuza Kazmi, references the alleged misrepresentation by the regulator against Debtbox as grounds for the sanctions.

Much of the allegations were based on earlier claims that the CFTC knowingly misrepresented some tax payments while suing My Forex Funds and its CEO for fraud. Based on those alleged misrepresentations, the regulator secured a statutory restraining order, freezing all assets of My Forex Funds and Kazmi. However, a court later unfroze the majority of Kazmi's assets.

“By manufacturing a false justification for a total asset freeze and receivership, the CFTC caused irreparable harm to Defendants, destroying overnight a business that took years to build and leaving Mr. Kazmi’s family without material support for months,” the motion stated.

“Nor is the CFTC’s misconduct limited to false statements to the Court. The CFTC also improperly sought to intrude on the attorney-client privilege between Mr. Kazmi and his counsel.”

According to the motion, the CFTC "lied to the court repeatedly" during the preliminary injunction hearing about the time it had learned about the falsehood of the statutory restraining order.

The CFTC denied to respond to Finance Magnates' queries, saying "due to ongoing litigation... the only way we will comment is through court filings."

Bust of a Major Prop Trading Firm

The CFTC initially charged My Forex Funds and its CEO with fraud at the end of last August. According to the CFTC, My Forex Funds generated at least $310 million in fees from its prop trading business. The platform has had more than 135,000 customers sign up since November 2021. However, the regulatory action shuttered the business overnight.

“Taken as a whole, the uncontroverted evidence shows a pattern of misconduct and an abuse of Defendants’ rights,” the motion added. “The CFTC still has not acknowledged that its false statements were material or that its staff acted in bad faith, much less taken meaningful steps to redress the harm to Defendants.”

“Sanctions are necessary here to send that message and to remedy the harm caused by the CFTC.”