Trader cleared

IF ANYTHING is more precious than gold, it might be an acquittal.

A former UBS Group AG precious metals trader was found not guilty yesterday of scheming to manipulate futures markets through a practice known as spoofing.

Andre Flotron (54) was cleared by a federal jury in New Haven, Connecticut, of a single count of conspiracy to engage in commodities fraud. It was the first acquittal in a spoofing-related case. He could have faced as long as 25 years in prison if convicted.

“We’re extremely pleased with the jury’s verdict,” Flotron’s defense attorney Marc Mukasey said. “Justice has been done.”

Prosecutors alleged that shady dealings were rampant on the UBS precious-metals desk. Spoofing was outlawed by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. Only a handful of people have faced criminal charges related to that practice. Flotron, a manual trader, was accused of tricking other market participants who primarily relied on high-frequency trading algorithms.

Flotron, a Swiss citizen, worked at UBS in Stamford and then in Zurich. He was arrested in 2017 while visiting his girlfriend in New Jersey.

Prosecutors say Flotron manipulated markets by placing “trick” buy or sell orders, and quickly cancelling them to either shift prices up or down. He was charged with scheming to engage in the practice with a subordinate, whom he trained to “spoof,” and another trader over a period of about five years starting in 2008. Economic turmoil at the time led to historic rallies in the prices of precious metals, especially gold.