CFTC has charged Jared J. Davis, former Head of an international Binary Options scheme, with fraud relating to a global binary options business he created and operated. According to the complaint, Davis fraudulently solicited and accepted at least $10 million from customers in the United States and elsewhere to trade off-exchange binary options on commodities and foreign currencies, from 2012 to 2016.
Davis allegedly used a number of trade names such as Option Mint, Option King, and Option Queen, for his internet marketing campaigns which he used to defraud customers by making misrepresentations and omissions of material facts, including misrepresenting and failing to
disclose that he effectively took the opposing position on each trade and therefore made money when customers lost money on trades.
According to the CFTC, Davis frequently had the trading platforms manipulate the options trading software settings to increase the odds of customer losses.
While the CFTC is seeking full restitution to defrauded investors, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, permanent registration and trading bans, the regulator warned victims that restitution orders may not result in the recovery of money lost, because of insufficient funds or assets.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio charged Davis in a 22-count indictment for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to launder money, wire fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice, tax evasion, and other crimes.
