The U.S. futures regulator fined Bunge Global Markets $550,000 for entering soybean futures contract orders that were never executed but which distorted market prices.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission found that in March 2009 two of Bunge’s proprietary traders entered electronic orders for Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures contracts on Globex, a CME Group trading platform, during its pre-opening session.
The Bunge traders entered the orders to determine the depth of support for soybean futures at specific price levels before the market opened. The futures regulator said the traders had no intention of executing the orders and pulled them before the open. The action affected the price of soybeans, violating the Commodity Exchange Act.