Miami resident Fabio Bretas de Freitas has been barred from the commodities market following a CFTC investigation and subsequent legal rulings. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced the revocation of Phy Capital Investments LLC’s registrations as a Commodity Pool Operator and Commodity Trading Advisor, as well as the Associated Person registration of Bretas, the firm’s owner.
The CFTC initiated proceedings in May 2020, culminating in an Initial Decision on Default issued by Judgment Officer Kavita Kumar Puri on August 31, 2020, and finalized September 30, 2020. Puri’s decision found both Bretas and Phy Capital subject to statutory disqualification from CFTC registration.
This disqualification stems from a prior order by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, which determined that Bretas and Phy Capital misappropriated funds from commodity pools and distributed false quarterly reports to investors. The court permanently enjoined them from violating anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act. Furthermore, the court ordered Bretas and Phy Capital to jointly pay over $17.2 million in monetary relief to affected parties.
Adding to the penalties, Bretas was also convicted on February 28, 2020, by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Case No. S3 19 Cr. 257 (LTS)) on charges of conspiracy to commit commodities fraud and wire fraud, directly linked to the same illicit activities.
The CFTC’s Division of Enforcement team, including Elizabeth M. Streit, Joy McCormack, Matthew Edelstein, Stacie Pan, Scott Williamson, and Robert Howell, were responsible for the investigation and prosecution of this case.
Source: CFTC.gov
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