January 20, 2016

CFTC Charges Oklahoma Resident Kevin J. Davis with Acting as an Unregistered Commodity Pool Operator and Engaging in Prohibited Pool Operator Activities

District Court Enters Temporary Restraining Order Freezing Davis’ Assets

Washington, DC – The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that on January 15, 2016, it filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma charging Kevin J. Davis of Ponca City, Oklahoma with acting as an unregistered commodity pool operator, failing to operate his commodity pool as a separate legal entity, accepting funds from pool participants in his own name, and commingling pool participants’ funds with his own. On the same date, Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange entered a Temporary Restraining Order prohibiting Davis from acting in any capacity requiring registration with the CFTC, soliciting and accepting funds from others for trading commodity interests, and freezing Davis’ assets pending further order of the court.

The CFTC’s Complaint alleges that, beginning no later than February 2012 and continuing through the present, Davis has solicited, accepted, and received approximately $2.7 million from multiple individuals for the purpose of trading off-exchange foreign currency contracts. The Complaint further alleges that Davis has pooled the solicited funds in a personal bank account and traded the funds through accounts held in his own name, where he has incurred more than $1.2 million in losses trading forex.

Court Schedules Hearing for February 4

In its continuing litigation, the CFTC seeks restitution for pool participants, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, trading and registration bans, and injunctions against further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act, as charged. Judge Miles-LaGrange has set an evidentiary hearing for February 4, 2016, for Davis to show cause why the court should not enter a preliminary injunction extending the relief granted in the Temporary Restraining Order.

CFTC Division of Enforcement staff members responsible for this case are Daniel Burstein, Joseph Konizeski, Melissa Cavers, Scott Williamson, and Rosemary Hollinger.

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CFTC’s Commodity Pool Fraud & Foreign Currency Fraud Advisories

The CFTC has issued several customer protection Fraud Advisories that provide the warning signs of fraud. These include the Commodity Pool Fraud Advisory, which warns customers about a type of fraud that involves individuals and firms, often unregistered, offering investments in commodity pools, and the Foreign Currency Trading (Forex) Fraud Advisory, which states that the CFTC has witnessed a sharp rise in Forex trading scams in recent years and helps customers identify this potential fraud.

Customers can report suspicious activities or information, such as possible violations of commodity trading laws, to the CFTC Division of Enforcement via a Toll-Free Hotline 866-FON-CFTC (866-366-2382) or file a tip or complaint online. 

Media Contact
Dennis Holden
202-418-5088

Last Updated: January 20, 2016