South African CEO Ordered to Pay a Record $3.4B in CFTC Bitcoin Forex Fraud Case

A U.S. court has ordered the head of bitcoin (BTC) pool operator Mirror Trading International (MTI) to pay $3.4 billion in restitution and penalties, the country's top commodities watchdog said in a Thursday statement.

The sum constitutes the highest civil monetary penalty ordered in any case brought by the the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the regulator said.

The CFTC charged South Africa-based Cornelius Johannes Steynberg with fraud in June 2022, alleging the "controlling person" at MTI accepted 29,421 BTC (valued at more than $1.7 billion at the time of acceptance) from 23,000 Americans for running an unlicensed commodity pool scheme.

MTI is undergoing liquidation in South Africa, according to the CFTC announcement, while Steynberg is a fugitive from South African law enforcement who has been detained in Brazil since December 2021.

The order finds MTI "liable for fraud in connection with retail foreign currency (forex) transactions, fraud by an associated person of a commodity pool operator (CPO), registration violations, and failure to comply with CPO regulations."

In addition to the multi-billion-dollar penalty, Steynberg is permanently prohibited from registering with the CFTC, and trading in any markets regulated by the watchdog.

Edited by Parikshit Mishra.

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Sandali Handagama

Sandali Handagama is a CoinDesk reporter with a focus on crypto regulation and policy. She does not own any crypto.

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South African Mirror Trading's CEO Fined $3.4B by U.S. in Bitcoin Forex Fraud Case

The founder of bitcoin pool operator MTI was charged with fraud last year for running an unlicensed commodity pool scheme.