Bank Of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ To Pay $600,000 Fine To U.S. CFTC

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission or CFTC issued an Order filing and settling charges against The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. or BTMU for engaging in multiple acts of spoofing in a variety of futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade, including futures contracts based on United States treasury notes and Eurodollars. The Order finds that BTMU engaged in this activity through one of its employees (Trader A), who accessed these markets through a trading platform from one of BTMU's Tokyo offices.

The Order required BTMU to pay a $600,000 civil monetary penalty and to cease and desist from violating the Commodity Exchange Act's prohibition against spoofing. The CFTC became aware of the conduct through BTMU's voluntary self-reporting of the wrongdoing.

The Order found that during the period starting at least July 2009 through December 2014, although largely in 2010 and 2011, Trader A placed multiple orders for futures contracts with an intent to cancel the orders before their execution. Trader A's spoofing strategies included submitting orders on opposite sides of the same market at nearly the same time.

The Order further found that Trader A engaged in this spoofing activity in order to move the market in a direction favorable to his orders. Once aware of Trader A's misconduct, BTMU promptly suspended the trader and reported the conduct to the CFTC's Division of Enforcement.

The Order makes additional findings about BTMU's self-reporting, cooperation, and remediation. The Order found that BTMU commenced an expansive internal review and assisted the Division's investigation of the conduct. The Order further finds that BTMU launched an overhaul of its systems and controls and implemented a variety of enhancements to detect and prevent similar misconduct.

The Order additionally found that BTMU revised its policies, updated its training, and implemented electronic systems to identify spoofing.