Market Manipulation. Search

Market manipulation case library

This library records 2,117 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
2,117
Total penalties
$15.4bn
Median penalty
$258k
Agencies
2
Techniques
36

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 608 Ponzi schemes 532 Paid stock promotion 219 Unregistered distributions 136 Pump and dump 121 Undisclosed control blocks 119 Spoofing 114 Wash trading 90 Price manipulation 72 Boiler rooms 71 Reverse merger schemes 66 The naked short selling debate 41 Benchmark submission rigging 32 Matched orders 24 Churning 19 Free riding and parking 18 Fake press releases 16 Layering 15 Newsletter scalping 15 Marking the close 10 Cash versus derivatives schemes 10 Front running 9 Shell factories 8 Chat group pumps 6 False rumours 5 Custodianship shell hijacking 5 Settlement price manipulation 4 Exchange wash trading 3 Banging the close 3 FX fixing 3 Engineered short squeeze 2 Marking the open 1 Rug pulls 1 Insider listing trading 1 Oracle manipulation 1 Float locking 1

By agency

CFTC 349 SEC 1768

By year filed

2026 85 2025 103 2024 182 2023 202 2022 174 2021 142 2020 178 2019 181 2018 221 2017 210 2016 179 2015 205 2014 27 2013 28

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
CFTC v. North Carolina Resident C. David Wright (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-06-26 Ponzi Schemes — unknown
CFTC v. Bentley Equities (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-06-05 Ponzi Schemes $150k judgment
CFTC v. Defendants Philip Milton (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-05-24 Ponzi Schemes $4m judgment
CFTC v. Christy (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-05-21 Ponzi Schemes — settled
CFTC v. unnamed respondents (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-05-14 Ponzi Schemes $2.5m filed
CFTC v. Ron Eibschutz (insider trading, 2013) CFTC 2013-05-09 Insider Trading — filed
CFTC v. Kevin McLaren (wash trading, 2013) CFTC 2013-04-30 Wash Trading $200k judgment
CFTC v. unnamed respondents (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-04-24 Ponzi Schemes $1.5m judgment
CFTC v. Defendants PMC (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-04-18 Ponzi Schemes $560k judgment
CFTC v. New York Firm 4X Solutions (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-04-09 Ponzi Schemes — filed
CFTC v. Cilli (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-03-28 Ponzi Schemes — unknown
CFTC v. Ronnie Gene Wilson (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-03-01 Ponzi Schemes $23m judgment
CFTC v. CME Group’s New York Mercantile Exchange and Two Former Employees (insider trading, 2013) CFTC 2013-02-22 Insider Trading — filed
CFTC v. Gelber Group (wash trading, 2013) CFTC 2013-02-09 Wash Trading $750k judgment
CFTC v. unnamed respondents (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-02-07 Ponzi Schemes $2.4m settled
CFTC v. The Royal Bank of Scotland plc and RBS Securities Japan Limited (benchmark submission rigging, 2013) CFTC 2013-02-07 Benchmark Submission Rigging , Price Manipulation +1 $325m judgment
CFTC v. unnamed respondents (ponzi schemes, 2013) CFTC 2013-01-29 Ponzi Schemes $1.5m settled