Court orders EminiFX and founder to pay over $288 million in CFTC Ponzi case

A US federal court in Manhattan has ordered Eddy Alexandre and his company EminiFX Inc. to pay more than $288 million for running a commodity pool Ponzi scheme, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced on 19 October 2026. The US District Court for the Southern District of New York granted the CFTC’s motions for summary judgment, injunctive relief and a civil monetary penalty.

What the court ordered

The orders require the defendants to pay $228,576,962 in restitution to defrauded investors and a civil monetary penalty of $45,148,500. They must also disgorge $15,049,500 in unlawful gains, offset by any amounts paid in restitution. The case began with the CFTC’s complaint of 12 May 2022.

How the scheme worked

According to the court’s summary judgment order, as described by the CFTC, EminiFX presented itself as an investment club offering affordable, easy access to cryptocurrency and forex trading using the latest technology. During its eight months in operation, tens of thousands of investors sent in more than $262 million.

The defendants reported weekly returns of 5% to 9.99%. In reality, EminiFX had net losses of more than $49 million, at least $15 million of which came from Alexandre taking investor funds for his own use. The court concluded that EminiFX was a Ponzi scheme and that investors had relied entirely on fraudulent misrepresentations.

Alexandre, of Valley Stream, New York, is serving a nine-year prison sentence in a parallel criminal case brought by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

Money returned so far

A court-appointed receiver has recovered investor funds and other assets and is distributing them to victims. As of July 2026, more than $98 million had been returned to more than 28,000 investors. The CFTC cautions that orders to repay victims do not always lead to money being recovered, because wrongdoers may not have enough funds or assets.

What it means for traders

Promised fixed weekly returns on forex or crypto trading are a common feature of the schemes regulators pursue. Before handing money to any club, pool or signal service, check who holds the funds and whether the firm is registered; our guide to choosing a trading educator sets out the questions to ask.