U.S. and Canadian financial regulators shut down Toronto-based proprietary trading firm My Forex Funds, accusing the company and its operator, Murtuza Kazmi, of defrauding retail traders of more than $300 million.。

The company's official website now contains the following information:

"Yesterday we learned that, without prior notice or discussion, a provincial securities regulator in Canada and the commodities regulator in the United States issued orders prohibiting us from trading securities or withdrawing funds from bank accounts.。

Until these freezing orders are lifted or modified, our business is also effectively, at least temporarily, frozen.。We will contact the regulator to determine if it should be cancelled or amended。The first court date for the freeze order is currently set for September 11 in the United States, with another hearing in Canada later that week.。We hope to resolve this issue as soon as possible and keep up to date。"

Meanwhile, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the U.S. derivatives market regulator, announced that it had filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey against Murtuza Kazmi, formerly of Phillipsburg, New Jersey, and his company, Traders.。Global Group Inc.(a New Jersey company) and Traders Global Group Inc.(a Canadian business organization) all operate under the name "My Forex Funds"。

The complaint alleges that they fraudulently solicited clients to trade in leveraged, margin or financed retail foreign exchange and leveraged retail commodities.。

August 29 U.S. District Judge Robert B.Kugler signed a statutory restraining order freezing the defendant's assets, requiring the defendant to submit its books and records to the CFTC for inspection and appoint a temporary receiver.。Judge Zahid N.Quraishi is scheduled to hold a hearing on the CFTC's preliminary injunction motion on Sept. 11 in Trenton, N.J.。

In ongoing litigation, the CFTC seeks to compensate defrauded investors, return illegal gains, civil fines, permanent trading and registration injunctions, and permanent injunctions for further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).。

"The CFTC's case against 'My Forex Funds" defendants symbolizes our commitment to stamp out retail fraud in the marketplace, "said Ian McGinley, director of enforcement.。"Any person who offers or enters into a leveraged retail foreign exchange contract without registration, or who offers or enters into a leveraged retail commodity contract over the counter, has acted in a clear violation of the law.。"

Case Background

According to the indictment, the defendants operated under the name "My Forex Funds" and allegedly provided retail customers with the opportunity to become "professional traders" by using Traders Global's funds to trade with third-party "liquidity providers" and share the profits from the trading.。They assure customers, "Your success is our business," "Only if you succeed, we can make money"。But in reality, Traders Global is the counterparty to almost all customer transactions.。

The complaint also alleges that Traders Global actively reduces the likelihood of a client trading profitably by using excuses to terminate a client's account, misleading assessments to reduce commissions on the net worth of a client's account, and covert use of specialized software to cause client orders to be executed at worse prices.。customers when orders are sent, and hinder a very small number of successful customers, thereby reducing customer profits and increasing customer losses。

As stated in the complaint, Traders Global's referral campaign has been successful, with more than 135,000 customers signing up for their trading plans since November 2021 and paying at least 3.$100 million in expenses。The indictment alleges that Kazmi used the proceeds of the fraud to buy luxury homes and cars and transfer tens of millions of dollars to his personal account.。

Related international action

In a separate action on August 29, the Ontario Securities Commission issued a temporary stop-trading order that included a ban on Traders Global Group Inc..and Murtuza Kazmi for all transactions in any securities。

CFTC thanks Ontario Securities Commission for assistance。