Release: 4979-04
For Release: August 19, 2004

U.S. DISTRICT COURT GRANTS SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO CFTC IN FRAUD ACTION AGAINST FLORIDA RESIDENTS, GENADY SPIVACK A.K.A. GEORGE SPIVAK, ELLISON KENT MORRIS, AND WORLD-WIDE CURRENCY SERVICES, CORP.

Defendants Ordered to Pay Over One Million Dollars in Restitution and Are Permanently Banned from Commodity Related Trading or Solicitation

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced today that the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida issued a Final Summary Judgment requiring repayment to defrauded customers of $1,092,880 by defendants World-Wide Currency Services, Corp. (World-Wide), World-Wide’s president, Gennady Spivack, a.k.a. George Spivack (Spivack), and World-Wide’s vice president, Ellison Kent Morris (Morris) (defendants).

U.S. District Court Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley also granted the Commission’s request for a permanent ban barring defendants from soliciting, receiving or accepting any funds in connection with the purchase or sale of a commodity futures contract.

The Court’s order found that the defendants fraudulently sold foreign currency futures contracts to customers under the guise of conducting spot currency transactions. Also, according to the order, defendants solicited customers using telemarketing tactics and claims urging customers to act quickly to take advantage of current market conditions and make substantial profits, with minimal risk. One customer was promised a monthly return of 1 to 2 percent, another was told to expect an annual profit of 20 percent, still others were promised anywhere from doubling their money to earning as much as five times their investment in just a few months, according to the order.

In addition, the court found that while customers were told their accounts traded on a daily or weekly basis and World-Wide generated and mailed monthly statements to customers, World-Wide engaged in little or no trading on behalf of its customers. Instead, according to the order, defendants misappropriated customer funds for personal expenses, and to pay overhead expenses, salaries and commissions, and for other unknown purposes unrelated to any legitimate trading.

The order stems from CFTC enforcement action filed in federal court in January 2003, charging the defendants, among other things, with fraudulently soliciting customers to invest in illegal, off-exchange foreign currency futures contracts (See CFTC News Release 4743-03, January 23, 2003).

The following CFTC Division of Enforcement staff members were responsible for this case: Robert Hildum, Mary Kaminski, Trabue Bland, Karon Powell, Charlie Ricci, and Timothy Mulreany.

# # #

Media Contacts
Alan Sobba
(202) 418-5080
Dennis Holden
(202) 418-5088
Office of External Affairs

Staff Contact
Timothy Mulreany
Chief Trial Attorney
CFTC Division of Enforcement
(202) 418-5306

Related Document
Order