Securities Regulation Daily Wrap Up, FRAUD AND MANIPULATION—M.D. Fla.: CFTC charges Cash FX and affiliates with $950 million forex Ponzi pyramid scheme, (Sep 28, 2026)
Organizations Mentioned:Cash FX Group SA | The Conversion Pros, Inc.
By Rebecca E. Hoffman, J.D.
The defendants solicited investors by promising up to 15 percent weekly returns, and by claiming to be a genuine enterprise amid “so many scams.”
According to the CFTC’s federal district court complaint, Cash FX Group S.A., its CEO, and an associated person, as well as The Conversion Pros, Inc.—which created the Cash FX platform—and its president and CEO operated a multilevel marketing scheme in which hundreds of millions were amassed from commodity pool participants and those recruited by them to contribute, in which the participants were falsely led to believe that their contributions would be used for forex trades. The participants lost at least $406 million in total, the complaint said (CFTC v. Cash FX Group S.A., No. 3:26-cv-02573 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 24, 2026)).
The complaint said that the defendants are liable for fraud; fraud by a commodity pool operator or associated person of a CPO; fraud by deceptive device or contrivance; failure to register as a CPO or AP of a CPO; and for failure to operate a commodity pool as a separate legal entity, to receive funds in the pool’s name and for commingling, in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act and Commission regulations.
Pyramids upon pyramids. The complaint asserted that Cash FX ran a multilevel marketing scheme from June 2019 through December 2023, whereby pool participants ostensibly would increase their returns by recruiting more participants and having those participants recruit as well, thus building a “pyramid.” Participants purchased contracts and were told that 70 percent of their contribution would be used for forex trading and 30 percent would pay for access to a program that would teach the participants to trade forex themselves. Participants would earn returns from forex trading as well as bonuses based on numbers of recruits and the size of pyramids. Before making any new contributions to try and earn more from the pool, participants had to withdraw their money and pay a 20 percent fee, the complaint explained.
The operation had over 400,000 accounts globally, with over 6,000 owned by U.S. residents. The pool participant accounts were “credited” to the individual defendants, who made up the apex of the pyramid.
All ‘a lie.’ “The central promise underlying the Cash FX scheme—that it would profitably trade pool participant funds in forex markets, generating revenue to pay pool participants—was a lie,” the CFTC explained. Very little forex trading took place, and new contributions were used to allow other participants to withdraw their funds. The defendants also received commissions from returns that had not actually materialized, and Cash FX paid monthly fees to Conversion Pros for each active pool participant.
The defendants collaborated on marketing videos and emails that were used to reach potential participants. One of the individuals emailed new participants and “explicitly encouraged” them to use Cash FX videos for recruitment. The defendants made multiple material misrepresentations in these videos, such as that Cash FX was “different” from “scams” that use more recent money coming in to pay less recent participants, and instead offered an actual trading pool that made returns in the markets. In a YouTube video, Cash FX’s CEO said “‘[t]here are so many scams, and we want to bring hope to people that there is still something genuine out there.’”
The CFTC also stated in the complaint that the defendants hosted live events and gave pool participants false account statements and sent emails showing profits to perpetuate the ruse. Furthermore, the misrepresentations and omissions were made with knowledge or at least reckless disregard for their falsity, the complaint said.
The defendants attempted to push back against public warnings and complaints. For example, Cash FX’s CEO explained in a YouTube video that “many MLM companies are scams that claim they were hacked as an excuse for delayed payouts, but … Cash FX really was hacked.”
The CFTC asked that the court permanently enjoin the defendants from further violations, and prohibit them from trading or being involved in commodity transactions, registering with the Commission, or acting as a principal, officer, or employee of a registered entity. The CFTC also asked for an order of disgorgement, restitution, rescission of contracts, and a civil monetary penalty.
The case is No. 3:26-cv-02573.
Attorneys: Rebecca Sue Jelinek for the CFTC.
Companies: Cash FX Group SA; The Conversion Pros, Inc.
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