CFTC & State Regulators Imposes More Than $51 Million in Penalties After Fraud Targeting Older Investors

Key Takeaways

• More than $51 million Recovered: A federal court ordered Safeguard Metals LLC and owner Jeffrey Ikahn to pay $25.6 million in restitution and a $25.6 million civil monetary penalty.
• Coordinated Multi-State Action: The CFTC obtained the judgment in partnership with 30 state securities regulators through NASAA.
• Fraud Targeting Older Investors: The defendants ran a nationwide scheme that took in about $68 million from more than 450 customers, most of them elderly or retirement-aged.
• Parallel SEC Case: A separate SEC action resulted in an identical $25.6 million disgorgement order and $25.6 million civil penalty, with payments offset between the agencies.
• Lifetime Trading and Registration Bans: The defendants are barred from future violations and prohibited from trading or registering with the CFTC and participating states.

Deep Dive

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and 30 state securities regulators have secured more than $51 million in sanctions and restitution in a long-running precious metals fraud case that targeted older investors across the country.

In a final judgment entered by the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Safeguard Metals and its owner, Jeffrey Ikahn (also known as Jeffrey Santulan and Jeffrey Hill), were ordered to pay $25.6 million in restitution to victims and a matching $25.6 million civil monetary penalty. The ruling caps a coordinated enforcement effort between the CFTC and state agencies belonging to the North American Securities Administrators Association.

“This resolution shows the impact the CFTC and state regulatory agencies have when joining forces to combat fraud and is a testament to the hard work of staff at the CFTC and our state regulator co-plaintiffs,” said Charles Marvine, Acting Chief of the Division of Enforcement’s Retail Fraud and General Enforcement Task Force.

The judgment follows an earlier consent order finding that the defendants operated a nationwide scheme that drew in approximately $68 million from more than 450 customers. According to the order, Safeguard Metals used false claims to sow fear about traditional retirement accounts, pushing customers toward silver coins and other metals sold at steep, undisclosed markups. Those inflated sales caused “substantial and immediate losses,” the court found.

The consent order also barred Ikahn and Safeguard Metals from future violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations, as well as relevant state laws, and blocks them from trading or registering with the CFTC or the participating state regulators.

The ruling resolves the CFTC and NASAA’s February 2022 enforcement action, bringing closure to a case that federal and state officials pursued jointly amid rising concerns about fraudulent precious metals schemes.

A parallel case by the Securities and Exchange Commission resulted in a separate May 2025 judgment ordering $25.6 million in disgorgement and a $25.6 million civil penalty. Any payments made toward one agency's judgment will offset the amounts owed under the other.

The CFTC noted that court-ordered restitution does not guarantee that victims will be made whole, particularly when defendants lack the assets to repay what they owe. Still, the agency emphasized that it will continue pursuing cases that protect customers and hold fraudsters accountable.

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