Same old story, client funds used to repay old investors and to pay personal expenses.

The CFTC has obtained a federal court order against Sidney J. Charles, Jr. and his Company, The Borrowing Station, requiring both to pay more than $600,000 following the discovery of a forex ponzi scheme run by Charles — $254,000 to defrauded investors plus a $350,000 penalty.

The story? Ponzi scheme. Charles solicited and accepted client funds by promising substantial investment returns, such as 25% per year or 10% per month, and falsely claimed that pool participant funds were guaranteed against trading losses. Only a portion of participant funds were actually deposited into trading accounts, and Charles lost a majority of those funds unsuccessfully trading forex. In addition, Charles misappropriated pool participant funds to pay for personal expenses and to fund Borrowing Station’s operations.

For the CFTC press release click here.

For more on the global Forex industry see the LeapRate-Dow Jones Forex Industry Report.