STATEN ISLAND, NY – Alexsander Efrosman, also known as Alex Besser, was hit with a hefty default judgment totaling $22,594,601.82 by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) following a case filed in the Southern District of New York on March 27, 2007. The judgment, issued by Chief Judge Kimba M. Wood, stems from allegations of large-scale fraud involving forex futures contracts.
According to the CFTC complaint, initially filed September 30, 2005, Efrosman, along with his companies Century Maxim Fund, Inc., and AJR Capital Inc., fraudulently solicited over $5 million from approximately 110 customers between April 2004 and June 2005. The funds were intended for trading managed accounts in forex futures, but were not traded on a registered entity as required.
The CFTC alleges that Efrosman misappropriated the solicited funds for personal expenses and gambling. He is accused of providing investors with fabricated account statements showing nonexistent trades and profits, securing nearly $300,000 from one Century Maxim investor and nearly $4.8 million from at least 109 AJR Capital investors. Efrosman reportedly promised investors returns of 13% to 28% monthly, supporting these claims with the falsified statements. He also allegedly used existing investors to solicit new investments, falsely claiming to limit risk and consistently generate profits.
The Century Maxim investor suffered a net loss of $285,308.67, while the AJR Capital investors experienced a combined net loss of $4,261,992.24. The judgment also notes that this isn’t Efrosman’s first run-in with the CFTC, citing a previous cease and desist order in February 2000 for similar illegal off-exchange foreign currency transactions and fraud.
The order permanently bans Efrosman and the companies from any commodity-related activity, including soliciting funds or trading on behalf of others. He is required to pay a $13,500,000 civil monetary penalty, $4,547,300.91 in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, and $4,547,300.91 in restitution. As of the date of the release, Efrosman is believed to be residing outside of the United States.
Source: CFTC.gov
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