CFTC Sanctions Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers agreed to pay civil penalties of $700,000 to settle a case involving inaccurate reporting on futures transactions involving large trading firms.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said the futures commission merchant based in Greenwich, Conn., failed to properly supervise the reporting of activity in accounts of large traders.

The regulator said the firm “repeatedly failed to aggregate positions for related accounts that it reported to the CFTC in its daily large trader submissions” from January 2008 to January 2012.

The firm also “failed to file updated Form 102s when large traders opened related accounts or changed information concerning their trading accounts.”

Futures commission merchants are required to submit Form 102s to identify account holders and entities excising trading control over different accounts in order to evaluate potential market risks.

A CFTC order filed Tuesday requires Interactive Broker to pay the $700,000 penalty and prohibits the company from future violations of relevant sections of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC Regulations 17.00, 17.01, and 166.3.

Interactive Brokers “cooperated fully with the CFTC during the commission's investigation and the firm has taken steps to improve its large trader reporting,’’ said director of media communications Caitlin Duffy.