Hedge fund manager Moore Capital Management and its affiliates reached a $25 million settlement with the CFTC over charges that the firm “attempted to manipulate the settlement prices of platinum and palladium futures contracts” on the New York Mercantile Exchange, according to a CFTC news release.
Also settled were charges from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission that Moore Capital did not “diligently supervise” an unidentified former portfolio manager involved in the market manipulation activities between November 2007 and May 2008, according to the news release.
Moore Capital was ordered to pay the $25 million civil penalty, and the CFTC also will restrict for three years Moore Capital’s registrations as commodity pool operators and/or commodity trading advisers. The CFTC settlement also includes a two-year prohibition for Moore Capital from trading in platinum and palladium futures and options markets near the close of each day, the release said.
Moore Capital, which manages about $15 billion in hedge funds and alternative investment strategies, announced the settlement in a statement, noting that the portfolio manager implicated in the CFTC order left the firm in the fall 2008.
“Neither Moore Capital’s principals nor its current management were involved in any improper trading and none have been accused of any wrongdoing. Moore Capital has cooperated fully with the CFTC throughout its investigation. We are committed to high standards of integrity in our business practices and have worked diligently to reach a settlement with the CFTC,” according to Moore Capital’s statement.
