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by Mike Caswell

A federal judge in New Jersey has imposed a $570,716 restitution order on Toronto's Ran Armon, one of those behind a phony on-line trading platform that defrauded investors of $1.4-million. (All figures are in U.S. dollars.) The government claimed that Mr. Armon and others ran Nonko Trading, a firm that accepted deposits from clients but only gave them practice accounts. The group targeted investors who were inexperienced or had a history of trading losses.

Mr. Armon's restitution is set out in an order filed on Thursday, July 23. The $570,716 that he must pay represents much of his penalty for the scheme, as he previously avoided jail. At his sentencing on Oct. 24, 2024, the judge ordered Mr. Armon to serve two years of probation. There was no trial, as he pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

The restitution order comes over nine years into the case, the details of which are set out in a parallel civil action filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on May 10, 2017. The scheme, as described in that complaint, began in 2013, when Mr. Armon and others started offering accounts to daytraders through Nonko. The firm drew in clients with terms that were far more attractive than those offered elsewhere. Among other things, Nonko allowed clients to trade with a minimum deposit of $2,500 and a margin account ratio of 20:1, the SEC said. Nonko also attracted new business with cheap commissions, according to the SEC.

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