Market Manipulation. Search

Market manipulation case library

This library records 2,348 market manipulation enforcement actions brought by financial regulators, each with the agency, the date, the alleged technique, the monetary relief ordered and a link to the regulator's own filing. The whole dataset is downloadable as JSON.

Actions
2,348
Total penalties
$15.4bn
Median penalty
$255k
Agencies
5
Techniques
37

Browse by facet

Every facet below is a real page with its own URL, so it works without JavaScript and can be linked, bookmarked and cited.

By technique

Insider trading 709 Ponzi schemes 568 Paid stock promotion 222 Unregistered distributions 137 Pump and dump 128 Price manipulation 124 Spoofing 120 Undisclosed control blocks 120 Wash trading 108 Boiler rooms 75 Reverse merger schemes 66 Benchmark submission rigging 53 The naked short selling debate 43 Matched orders 38 Churning 21 Layering 19 Free riding and parking 18 Fake press releases 16 Cash versus derivatives schemes 15 Newsletter scalping 15 Marking the close 13 Front running 12 Chat group pumps 11 FX fixing 11 Shell factories 8 False rumours 5 Custodianship shell hijacking 5 Settlement price manipulation 4 Exchange wash trading 3 Banging the close 3 Engineered short squeeze 2 Marking the open 1 Rug pulls 1 Insider listing trading 1 Oracle manipulation 1 Float locking 1 Dilution death spirals 1

By agency

ASIC 112 CFTC 347 FCA 47 OSC 71 SEC 1771

By year filed

2026 91 2025 120 2024 193 2023 223 2022 188 2021 159 2020 200 2019 192 2018 244 2017 228 2016 194 2015 229 2014 44 2013 43

Ranked lists: largest penalties · largest spoofing penalties · longest sentences · most-charged individuals · biggest crypto cases · most active courts

All actions, newest first

Action Agency Filed Technique Penalty Status
SEC v. Sears and William J. (undisclosed control blocks, 2016) SEC 2016-09-16 Undisclosed Control Blocks — judgment
SEC v. Tod A. Ditommaso, Esq. (undisclosed control blocks, 2016) SEC 2016-09-16 Undisclosed Control Blocks , Unregistered Distributions — unknown
SEC v. Steven Metro (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-09-14 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. Manuel E. Jesus aka Manny Backus, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-09-13 Paid Stock Promotion $235k judgment
SEC v. Richard Weed, Esq. (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-09-13 Pump And Dump — unknown
SEC v. BOKF, NA (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-09-09 Ponzi Schemes $600k judgment
SEC v. Dennis W. Hamilton (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-09-07 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Contrarian Press, LLC, Scott S. Fraser, and Nathan Yeung (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-09-06 Paid Stock Promotion — filed
SEC v. Dennis Wayne Hamilton (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-30 Insider Trading — filed
Former director of joint venture partner charged with insider trading offences (ASIC, 2016) ASIC 2016-08-26 Insider Trading — filed
FCA v. Peter Charles Johnson Individual (benchmark submission rigging, 2016) FCA 2016-08-26 Benchmark Submission Rigging — filed
SEC v. Edward F. Panos, et al. (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-08-25 Pump And Dump — unknown
SEC v. Cedric Cañas Maillard (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-24 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. Peterson and Curtis A. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-23 Ponzi Schemes $7.5k settled
SEC v. John W.R. Miller (reverse merger schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-22 Reverse Merger Schemes — settled
SEC v. Bay City Transfer Agency and Registrar, Inc. Amersey and Nitin M. (undisclosed control blocks, 2016) SEC 2016-08-18 Undisclosed Control Blocks — unknown
SEC v. J. Patrick O'Neill and Robert H. Bray (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-18 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. Sean Stewart (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-18 Insider Trading — filed
CFTC v. unnamed respondents (insider trading, 2016) CFTC 2016-08-17 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. Damon M. Barnes and Cathy S. Barnes (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-16 Ponzi Schemes — settled
SEC v. Daniel J. Bean (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-16 Ponzi Schemes $7.5k settled
SEC v. Jeremy D. Barnes (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-16 Ponzi Schemes — settled
SEC v. John L. Shipley (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-16 Ponzi Schemes $7.5k settled
SEC v. Joshua M. Beauregard and Jennifer M. Beauregard (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-16 Ponzi Schemes — settled
SEC v. Lathen and Donald F. ("Jay") Jr. Eden Arc Capital Management, LLC Eden Arc Capital Advisors, LLC (undisclosed control blocks, 2016) SEC 2016-08-15 Undisclosed Control Blocks — unknown
SEC v. Paul T. Rampoldi , et al. (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-12 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Patrick Churchville (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-08-05 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. Edward J. Kosinski (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-08-04 Insider Trading — filed
CFTC v. John D. Briner (custodianship shell hijacking, 2016) CFTC 2016-08-03 Custodianship Shell Hijacking $280k judgment
SEC v. Traffic Monsoon et al. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-07-28 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. Jeffery A. McCollum and JNL Oilfield Instruments, LLC (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-07-27 Ponzi Schemes $160k settled
SEC v. Herbert K. Sudfeld, Jr. (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-07-26 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. Yi Chen, CPA (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-07-26 Insider Trading — settled
SEC v. Braslau and Samuel (boiler rooms, 2016) SEC 2016-07-25 Boiler Rooms — unknown
SEC v. James Hugh Brennan, III, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-07-25 Paid Stock Promotion — unknown
SEC v. Samuel Braslau (boiler rooms, 2016) SEC 2016-07-25 Boiler Rooms — unknown
SEC v. Thomas D. Melvin, et al. (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-07-25 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. Blount and John Steven (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-07-22 Ponzi Schemes — unknown
FCA v. Gavin Duncan Paul Breeze (insider trading, 2016) FCA 2016-07-15 Insider Trading — settled
SEC v. The Phoenix Companies, Inc. (benchmark submission rigging, 2016) SEC 2016-07-15 Benchmark Submission Rigging — settled
CFTC v. Defendants Matthew J. Marcus (custodianship shell hijacking, 2016) CFTC 2016-07-08 Custodianship Shell Hijacking $250k judgment
SEC v. Thomas W. Avent, Jr., Raymond J. Pirrello, Jr., and Lawrence J. Penna (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-07-08 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Toni Tong Chen, CPA (unregistered distributions, 2016) SEC 2016-07-08 Unregistered Distributions — judgment
CFTC v. Naples (ponzi schemes, 2016) CFTC 2016-07-06 Ponzi Schemes $7.5m judgment
SEC v. Luis Martin-Caro Sanchez (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-07-05 Insider Trading — filed
CFTC v. Former CBOE Member Alvin Guy Wilkinson and his Connecticut-based Entities (ponzi schemes, 2016) CFTC 2016-06-29 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. Andrew F. Kerr (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-29 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Chris Faulkner, et. al (price manipulation, 2016) SEC 2016-06-24 Price Manipulation — filed
SEC v. Malcolm Segal (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-06-24 Ponzi Schemes — judgment
SEC v. Mitchell Brown (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-06-21 Pump And Dump — judgment
SEC v. James S. Hannon (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-20 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. StratoComm Corporation, et al. (unregistered distributions, 2016) SEC 2016-06-17 Unregistered Distributions — appealed
SEC v. Christopher Salis, Douglas Miller, Edward Miller, and Barrett Biehl (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-16 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Andrew K. Proctor, et al. (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-06-14 Pump And Dump $910k judgment
SEC v. Providence Financial Investments, Inc., Providence Fixed Income Fund, LLC, Jeffory Churchfield, and Jack Jarrell (unregistered distributions, 2016) SEC 2016-06-13 Unregistered Distributions — judgment
SEC v. Dynkowski, et al. (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-06-09 Pump And Dump $83.2k judgment
SEC v. Guolin Ma (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-09 Insider Trading — settled
SEC v. Ethiopian Electric Power (benchmark submission rigging, 2016) SEC 2016-06-08 Benchmark Submission Rigging — unknown
SEC v. Michael J. Maciocio and David P. Hobson (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-08 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Miller Energy Resources, Inc. Boyd and others (reverse merger schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-06-07 Reverse Merger Schemes — settled
SEC v. Richard Grossman (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-06 Insider Trading — judgment
CFTC v. Haena Park and Her Companies Phaetra Capital GP LLC (ponzi schemes, 2016) CFTC 2016-06-04 Ponzi Schemes — filed
Sydney man jailed on insider trading charges (ASIC, 2016) ASIC 2016-06-03 Insider Trading — filed
SEC v. Peter D. Nunan (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-03 Insider Trading $255k settled
OSC v. Andrei Miguel Postrado (insider trading, 2016) OSC 2016-06-03 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. Spongetech Delivery Systems, Inc., et al. (pump and dump, 2016) SEC 2016-06-02 Pump And Dump $100k judgment
SEC v. Albert Fried & Company, LLC (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-06-01 Paid Stock Promotion , Pump And Dump — settled
SEC v. Steven V. McClatchey and Gary J. Pusey (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-06-01 Insider Trading — judgment
SEC v. JSG Capital Investments, LLC, et al. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-05-31 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. David B. Kaplan, Esq., et al. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-05-27 Ponzi Schemes — unknown
SEC v. Federated Global Investment Management Corp. (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-05-27 Insider Trading — settled
CFTC v. Citibank (benchmark submission rigging, 2016) CFTC 2016-05-26 Benchmark Submission Rigging , Price Manipulation $175m judgment
SEC v. Christopher R. Esposito, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-05-26 Paid Stock Promotion — filed
OSC v. Fernando Postrado (insider trading, 2016) OSC 2016-05-17 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. John Patrick O'Neill (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-05-13 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. Imran Husain, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-05-12 Paid Stock Promotion , Shell Factories — unknown
SEC v. Louis Martin Blazer III (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-05-06 Ponzi Schemes — settled
FCA v. Mark Samuel Taylor (insider trading, 2016) FCA 2016-05-05 Insider Trading — settled
SEC v. Marquis Properties LLC, Chad Deucher and Richard Clatfelter (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-05-05 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. Santos and Postal & Company, P.C. and Joseph A. Scolaro, CPA (undisclosed control blocks, 2016) SEC 2016-04-29 Undisclosed Control Blocks — judgment
SEC v. Asher Z. Zwebner and Luke C. Zouvas, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-04-26 Paid Stock Promotion , Pump And Dump — unknown
SEC v. Robert Grabowski (boiler rooms, 2016) SEC 2016-04-22 Boiler Rooms — judgment
SEC v. Ener1, Inc. (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-04-19 Insider Trading — settled
SEC v. Ariel Quiros, et al. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-04-14 Ponzi Schemes — unknown
SEC v. John Afriyie (insider trading, 2016) SEC 2016-04-14 Insider Trading — unknown
SEC v. Town of Ramapo, et al. (wash trading, 2016) SEC 2016-04-14 Wash Trading — filed
SEC v. William E. Mapp, III, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-04-11 Paid Stock Promotion $200k settled
FCA v. Paul White (benchmark submission rigging, 2016) FCA 2016-04-08 Benchmark Submission Rigging — unknown
SEC v. David Aubel and Robert Raffa (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-04-07 Paid Stock Promotion — unknown
SEC v. Edward Laborio, et al. (boiler rooms, 2016) SEC 2016-04-07 Boiler Rooms — judgment
CFTC v. CFTC Defendants Heet Khara (spoofing, 2016) CFTC 2016-04-06 Spoofing $2.7m judgment
CFTC v. Staten Island-Resident Michael Pucciarelli and his Company (wash trading, 2016) CFTC 2016-04-06 Wash Trading $280k judgment
SEC v. Steve Pappas (reverse merger schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-04-05 Reverse Merger Schemes $50k judgment
SEC v. John Scott Clark (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-03-31 Ponzi Schemes — filed
SEC v. Daniel Rivera, et al. (ponzi schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-03-30 Ponzi Schemes $160k judgment
SEC v. Gibson and Christopher M. (front running, 2016) SEC 2016-03-29 Front Running — unknown
SEC v. Tobin Smith, et al. (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-03-29 Paid Stock Promotion $75k settled
SEC v. Arcturus Corporation, et al. (unregistered distributions, 2016) SEC 2016-03-24 Unregistered Distributions — unknown
SEC v. Canaccord Genuity Inc. (reverse merger schemes, 2016) SEC 2016-03-24 Reverse Merger Schemes — settled
SEC v. Guy Gentile (paid stock promotion, 2016) SEC 2016-03-23 Paid Stock Promotion — filed