CHICAGO, IL – December 8, 2021 – Roman Banoczay Jr. of Bratislava, Slovakia, has been penalized by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for engaging in a manipulative and deceptive scheme to defraud in the crude oil futures market. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois entered a consent order on December 7, resolving charges against Banoczay Jr., along with his father, Roman Banoczay Sr., and their company, BAZUR Spol. S.R.O.
The CFTC alleged that between early 2018, Banoczay Jr., acting as an agent for his father and BAZUR, repeatedly engaged in spoofing – a practice involving the placement of orders with the intent to cancel them before execution – on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Thousands of these orders were placed to create a false impression of market interest, aiming to manipulate other traders into fulfilling Banoczay Jr.’s desired orders.
The court found that while Banoczay Jr. directly executed the spoofing orders, Banoczay Sr. and BAZUR are vicariously liable due to Banoczay Jr.’s actions within the scope of his agency. The CME Group previously took disciplinary action against Banoczay Jr. for the same conduct, as outlined in Notice of Disciplinary Action NYMEX 18-0877-BC, effective March 23, 2020.
The consent order imposes a $750,000 civil monetary penalty against Banoczay Jr. All three defendants – Banoczay Jr., Banoczay Sr., and BAZUR – are prohibited from trading in commodity interests and registering with the CFTC for a period of two years. They are also required to cease and desist from further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act’s (CEA) prohibitions against spoofing and manipulative schemes.
The CFTC initially filed a complaint against the defendants on September 29, 2020. The agency acknowledged the assistance provided by the National Bank of Slovakia and the CME Group Inc. in the investigation.
Source: CFTC.gov
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