CFTC Charges N.C. Man in $14M Crypto and Futures Fraud

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed a complaint Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina charging Trevor Vernon and Argent Capital Management LLC with operating a fraudulent commodity pool that took about $14 million from roughly 60 investors.

The filing says the pool traded equity index futures, options on those futures and cryptocurrencies. The CFTC alleges Vernon and his firm misled investors with quarterly financial updates and monthly performance recap emails that presented Vernon as a successful trader while he was incurring large losses.

According to the complaint, Vernon lost at least $8.6 million trading futures, options and crypto using participants' funds. The filing states: “In reality, his trading of participants' funds resulted in consistent and catastrophic losses.”

The complaint further alleges Vernon and Argent Capital operated the commodity pool without required CFTC registration and falsely represented they were properly registered. The filing also accuses Vernon of making false statements during sworn testimony obtained in the course of the agency's investigation.

The CFTC is seeking civil relief including monetary penalties, disgorgement, restitution to harmed investors, permanent trading and registration bans, and a permanent injunction against Vernon and Argent Capital. Both Vernon and the firm are named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The complaint notes that commodity pools collect funds from multiple investors to trade commodity interests such as futures and options. Operators generally must register with the CFTC or qualify for an exemption; the filing alleges Vernon and his firm failed to meet those requirements and violated provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations.

The case will proceed in federal court in the Western District of North Carolina, where the CFTC will pursue the claims and requested relief. The complaint does not provide a detailed public timeline of the pool's trading activity or identify individual investors.