A CFTC forex fraud order has ended the regulator’s civil case against a Louisiana man and two companies with a $9.2 million penalty and permanent market bans. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced the default judgment on October 21, 2026. Its release does not state when the court entered the order, so the announcement date should not be treated as the order date.

CFTC Forex Fraud Order Sets $9.2 Million Penalty

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana ordered Michael B. DePetrillo, Meteor LLC and NOLA FX Capital Management LLC to pay a $9,211,492 civil monetary penalty. The CFTC’s October 21 announcement says the judgment also permanently bars the defendants from trading and registering with the agency.

The court found that the defendants fraudulently solicited participants, misrepresented trading profitability and issued false account statements. Those findings distinguish the judgment from a pending complaint, an important enforcement distinction also visible in the FTC’s ticket-resale lawsuit.

Court Found More Than $3 Million Misappropriated

The court found that more than $3 million was misappropriated. According to the CFTC, money was used to pay earlier participants in a Ponzi-like pattern, cover DePetrillo’s personal expenses and fund trading in his personal account.

The regulator’s October 28, 2024 complaint announcement had alleged that at least $7.6 million was solicited and accepted from at least 40 people. The final release uses the narrower finding of more than $3 million misappropriated, so the two figures measure different parts of the conduct.

Criminal Restitution Is Separate From the Civil Penalty

DePetrillo pleaded guilty in the related criminal case on February 18, 2025. A federal court sentenced him to nine years in prison on July 23, 2025 and ordered $6,748,412 in restitution. That restitution is separate from the CFTC’s $9.2 million civil monetary penalty.

The outcome adds to recent U.S. regulatory attention on trading controls and investor protection. Fusion Market News has also covered the CFTC’s AI trading forum and the SEC’s 2027 examination priorities. For investors, the practical warning is to verify registration and independently confirm account activity rather than relying on statements supplied by a promoter.

Elsy Kanana is a financial and cryptocurrency journalist at FusionMarketNews, covering digital assets, blockchain technology, financial markets, and emerging fintech trends. Her reporting focuses on market movements, regulatory developments, and on-chain analytics, delivering clear, data-driven insights to readers worldwide.