Frank M. Cerisano Jr.

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26606 / August 10, 2026 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Frank M. Cerisano Jr. , No. 26-cv-02444 (D. Nev. filed Aug. 10, 2026) SEC Files Settled Action as to Nevada Resident in Alleged Manipulative Spoofing Scheme On August 10, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed settled charges as to Frank M. Cerisano Jr., a resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, for allegedly conducting a manipulative stock trading scheme known as spoofing over a four-year period and generating approximately $1,115,672 in ill-gotten gains. According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada, Cerisano’s scheme involved rapidly placing a series of non-bona fide “spoof” orders, which he did not intend to execute and which artificially moved the stock price in a direction of his choosing, on one side of the market for a particular stock in one broker-dealer account. As alleged, Cerisano then would place and execute orders on the opposite side of the market in another broker-dealer account to take advantage of the artificial price movements he had created, before quickly canceling his spoof orders. The SEC’s complaint alleges that after a broker-dealer warned Cerisano to halt his apparently manipulative trading and ultimately closed Cerisano’s account because of it, Cerisano used multiple accounts at other broker-dealers to continue his spoofing scheme. Without admitting the allegations in the SEC’s complaint, Cerisano consented to the entry of a final judgment, subject to court approval, that would permanently enjoin him from violating Sections 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Sections 9(a)(2) and 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder and order him to pay disgorgement of $1,115,672 plus prejudgment interest of $26,472.82, and a civil penalty of $334,701.60. The final judgment would also prohibit Cerisano, for a period of five years, from, directly or indirectly, opening, maintaining or trading in any brokerage account(s) in his name, the names of any immediate family members, the name of any company over which he has any control, or the name(s) of any third party individuals, without providing the relevant broker-dealer(s) a copy of the complaint and final judgment entered against him. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Timothy Work, Matthew Koop, and Mandy Sturmfelz of the Enforcement Division’s Market Abuse Unit, and was supervised by Assistant Director Paul Kim and Market Abuse Unit Chief Joseph Sansone. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Resources <ul class="field