New York, NY – Haena Park and her affiliated companies are facing charges of operating a fraudulent commodity pool and misappropriating over $23 million from investors, according to a complaint filed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the Southern District of New York.
Park, along with Phaetra Capital GP LLC (also known as Argenta Capital GP LLC), Phaetra Capital Management LP (also known as Argenta Capital LLC), and Argenta Group LLC (collectively, the Pool Defendants), allegedly engaged in fraudulent schemes from at least January 2010 through the present. The CFTC alleges the defendants fraudulently solicited funds from approximately 50 individuals to invest in a commodity pool trading futures contracts and leveraged foreign currencies.
The complaint details that Park misrepresented her trading expertise and the profitability of the pool, falsely claiming a $1 million investment in 2009 had grown to $4,778,229 by February 2015, representing a 393.2% return. In reality, Park’s trading resulted in losses exceeding $18 million, which she concealed from investors by providing fabricated monthly statements.
Furthermore, the CFTC alleges Park misappropriated investor funds, using them to make payments to other investors – resembling a Ponzi scheme – and to cover personal expenses such as credit card bills and cash withdrawals. The complaint also charges Park and Yul Kaseman with making false statements to the National Futures Association.
The CFTC is seeking full restitution for defrauded investors, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, permanent trading bans, and a permanent injunction against future violations of commodities laws. The agency received assistance in the investigation from the National Futures Association, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The case is being pursued by CFTC staff members Greta G. Gao, Luke B. Marsh, Dmitriy Vilenskiy, Michael P. Geiser and Paul G. Hayeck.
Source: CFTC.gov
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