The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida entered consent orders against Steven Likos and Archie Rice for retail fraud, fraud as an associated person of a commodity pool operator and related regulatory violations. Likos must pay USD 320,041.38 in disgorgement, while Rice must pay a USD 227,220 civil monetary penalty. Both are permanently barred from trading and registration and enjoined from further violations. Likos misappropriated customer funds while acting as a sales agent for Algo Capital LLC and misrepresented customers’ withdrawal rights and the firm’s claimed use of a proprietary trading algorithm. Rice misappropriated funds solicited for Centurion Capital Group Inc. and made false claims about historical profits and customers’ ability to withdraw funds. Both ignored red flags that Traders Domain FX Ltd., which purportedly traded customer funds, was engaged in fraud and was not trading the funds as claimed. The orders resolve all CFTC claims against Likos and Rice in the enforcement action filed on Sept. 30, 2024, while proceedings against the remaining defendants continue. The CFTC cautioned that the disgorgement order may not produce recoveries for victims if sufficient funds or assets are unavailable.

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