Trafigura’s $55 Million Settlement and CFTC Compliance Measures
Today the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued an order simultaneously filing and settling charges against Trafigura Trading LLC for multiple violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and associated CFTC regulations. The order requires Trafigura to pay a $55 million civil penalty and implement measures to ensure future compliance with the CEA.
Role of Whistleblowers in CFTC Enforcement and Thoughts from the Former Director of the CFTC Whistleblower Office
Statement of Christopher Ehrman, former Director of the CFTC’s Whistleblower Office and partner at Phillips & Cohen, an international whistleblower law firm:
“The matter involving Trafigura Trading LLC shows that the Commission is committed to protecting whistleblowers and their ability to communicate with Commission staff about potential violations of law. Rule 165.19(b) strictly prohibits any attempt to impede whistleblowers from providing information to the Commission. Today’s enforcement action shows that the Division of Enforcement will not hesitate to enforce this rule and sanction persons or entities who violate it.”
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Under Mr. Ehrman’s leadership at the CFTC, successful enforcement actions based on information provided by whistleblowers resulted in monetary sanctions totaling more than $3 billion and whistleblower awards amounting to approximately $330 million.
Phillips & Cohen’s Expertise in CFTC Whistleblower Cases
Phillips & Cohen is the most successful law firm representing whistleblowers, with recoveries from cases totaling over $13 billion and 22 awards for clients under Dodd-Frank whistleblower reward programs. At Phillips & Cohen, Mr. Ehrman joined the former first head of the SEC Office of the Whistleblower, a former deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the author of a leading treatise on the False Claims Act, and numerous attorneys with decades of experience representing whistleblowers.