SEC obtains judgment against binary options firm EZTD
The SEC has managed to enforce compliance by EZTD with a final Commission order dating back to November 2016.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has managed to enforce compliance by binary options EZTD, Inc. with a final Commission order entered against it on November 10, 2016. This order required EZTD to disgorge $1,515,858 plus interest, and pay a civil penalty of $200,000, plus interest.
Following several months of legal proceedings at the Delaware District Court, Judge Leonard P Stark on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, signed a Judgment in favor of the SEC and against EZTD.
EZTD is ordered to pay to the Commission the amount of $834,569.14 in disgorgement (plus interest) and a civil money penalty of $200,000 (plus interest). The respondent is also ordered to cease and desist from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of Section 15(a)(l) of the Exchange Act and Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
EZTD is a registered Delaware corporation with a principal place of business in Tel Aviv, Israel and Nicosia, Cyprus.
The penalty stems from a matter involving EZTD’s offers and sales of binary options to US customers, between June 2011 and August 2014, through EZTD’s two online trading platforms, eztrader.com and globaloption.com. The binary options that were the subject of these offers and sales were over the-counter, cash-settled option contracts. They did not give the holder the right to purchase or sell the underlying assets and their time duration was limited. These binary options constituted securities under the federal securities laws.
Earlier in May, the SEC has submitted a proposed consent judgment. EZTD has agreed to the entry of a judgment. The document has been signed by EZTD Director Zvi Riterband.
In that document, the SEC quantified the sum still owed by EZTD. According to the estimates included in the proposed consent judgment, EZTD has only paid $738,980 toward its obligation as of May 21, 2019, and owes $1,034,569.14 plus interest. Once the due payments are made, the Commission will provide EZTD with a full satisfaction of judgment.
