CFTC Obtains Over $5.3 Million Judgment Against Storm Bryant, Elijah Bryant, and LLCs for Forex Fraud Scheme

A federal court in the Western District of North Carolina has granted an order for summary judgment and a permanent injunction against Storm Bryant, Elijah Bryant III, and three related North Carolina entities: CapitalStorm LLC, GenerationBlack LLC, and Ncome LLC. The judgment resolves an enforcement action initiated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regarding an off-exchange foreign currency (forex) fraud that misappropriated client funds. According to court findings, from March 2018 to September 2021, the defendants solicited 233 retail clients who were not eligible contract participants to engage in leveraged, margined, or financed off-exchange forex trading. The defendants took in over $1.9 million from these investors and misappropriated the entire amount. To keep the scheme operational, the defendants sent approximately $664,000 back to clients disguised as trading profits or principal withdrawals in the manner of a Ponzi scheme. The court determined that the Bryants and their companies induced clients into depositing money through material misrepresentations and omissions. They falsely claimed high trading performance, generous returns, and that client funds would be used to open live trading accounts. In truth, the defendants never opened trading accounts or conducted trading for their clients; the accounts clients were allowed to view were merely demo accounts. Client deposits were placed into personal bank accounts to support the defendants' lavish personal lifestyles. Additionally, the court found that CapitalStorm LLC, GenerationBlack LLC, and Ncome LLC acted as unregistered Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) and failed to maintain required books and records, while Storm and Elijah Bryant acted as unregistered associated persons. The Bryants were held liable as controlling persons of the corporate entities. The court order imposes a permanent ban preventing the defendants from trading in CFTC-regulated markets and from registering with the CFTC. The defendants are required to pay, jointly and severally, $1.3 million in victim restitution and a $3.9 million civil monetary penalty. The CFTC warned investors that restitution orders may not guarantee the recovery of lost funds if the liable parties lack adequate assets. The agency strongly advises the public to check the registration status of any forex firm or trading professional using the National Futures Association (NFA) BASIC system before investing.