David Butler, who stands behind scams such as SpotFN, Binary FN and Janus Options, pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy on Wednesday.

Butler was arrested in April 2022 in Costa Rica and extradited to the United States on July 14, 2022. When sentenced, Butler faces up to 20 years in prison.

As set forth in court filings, between approximately January 2011 and October 2016, Butler and his co-conspirators operated binary options companies from Glen Cove, New York, Costa Rica and Kosovo.

The binary options companies promised to pay investors, who were located throughout the United States, a predetermined profit based upon particular outcomes in the markets for securities, currencies and other investments. For example, the binary options companies would offer to pay customers a predetermined profit if a particular security or currency was valued at a particular price on a particular day at a particular time.

To induce investments, Butler and his co-conspirators told investors, in telephone calls and emails, that the predetermined profits that the Binary Options Companies had promised them would be based upon the actual prices of securities, currencies and other investments at particular points in time.

Butler and his co-conspirators used computer software that allowed the Binary Options Companies to manipulate data associated with the investors’ binary options so that the probability of investors earning a profit would favor the Binary Options Companies. At no time did Butler or any other employee of the Binary Options Companies inform the investors that the binary options that they had purchased from the Binary Options Companies could be manipulated to the investors’ disadvantage.

As a result of their deception, Butler and his co-conspirators stole more than $2.9 million from investors.