September 6, 2012

Federal Court in Tennessee Orders Blue Sky Capital Management Corp. and its Principal, Gregory M. Schneider, to Pay $140,000 for Making False Statements to the National Futures Association

Washington, DC – The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that it obtained a federal court order requiring Blue Sky Capital Management Corp. (Blue Sky) and its principal, Gregory M. Schneider, jointly and severally to pay a $140,000 civil monetary penalty for making false statements to representatives of the National Futures Association (NFA), the futures industry self-regulatory organization, which operates under CFTC oversight. Schneider currently resides in Bellville, Ohio, and Blue Sky maintained a business address in Lebanon, Tenn.

The consent order of permanent injunction, entered on August 28, 2012 by Judge John T. Nixon of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, stems from a CFTC complaint filed on August 8, 2011 (see CFTC Press Release 6091-11, August 10, 2011). The complaint charged Blue Sky and Schneider with making false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements to the NFA and willfully concealing material facts from the NFA in connection with an NFA audit in 2008 of Blue Sky. Blue Sky at the time was a CFTC-registered Commodity Pool Operator and Commodity Trading Advisor.

The order finds that during the NFA audit of Blue Sky, Blue Sky and Schneider misrepresented to the NFA that Blue Sky began managing customer accounts in 2008, managed 10 customer accounts with an aggregate equity of approximately $20,000, and had received no customer complaints. The order further finds that Blue Sky and Schneider failed to disclose that, in 2007, Blue Sky managed approximately 80 customer accounts with an aggregate equity of approximately $1.2 million, and that a Blue Sky customer complained about the unauthorized trading of his account before, and even during, the NFA audit.

The order also imposes permanent trading and registration bans against the defendants and permanently prohibits them from further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act, as charged.

The CFTC appreciates the assistance of the NFA in this action.

CFTC Division of Enforcement staff responsible for this action are Stephanie Reinhart, Joseph Konizeski, Judith McCorkle, Scott Williamson, Rosemary Hollinger, and Richard Wagner.

Media Contact
Dennis Holden
202-418-5088

Last Updated: September 6, 2012