Former Amaranth star fined over gas trades
Brian Hunter, the natural gas trader whose large bets helped precipitate the $6bn collapse of Amaranth, the hedge fund, has agreed to pay $750,000 to settle attempted market manipulation charges.
The CFTC sued Mr Hunter and Amaranth in 2007, claiming they had distorted wholesale gas prices on two occasions several months before losses sank the fund.
Amaranth paid a fine of $7.5m to settle manipulation charges in 2009, but Mr Hunter, its former star gas trader, fought on in court.
The $750,000 civil penalty agreed by Calgary-based Mr Hunter is a fraction of the $100m that Amaranth paid him in one year, according to an earlier CFTC court filing.
Mr Hunter was accused of trying to manipulate prices on the last trading day of Nymex gas futures as they expired in February and March of 2006. Amaranth and Mr Hunter tried to push down gas prices on the Nymex to boost profits in much larger gas positions on the Intercontinental Exchange, which hosts a parallel gas contract, according to the original complaint.
Source: FT- Former Amaranth star fined over gas trades
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