Parties in FXCM lawsuit secure extra time to complete depositions
A lawsuit brought by investors in FXCM Inc, now known as Global Brokerage Inc (OTCMKTS:GLBR), continues at the New York Southern District Court. The parties in this case, which accuses the broker, Dror Niv, and William Ahdout, of securities fraud, have secured additional time to conduct depositions of witnesses.
On December 7, 2020, the Honorable Barbara Moses signed an order granting the changes to the schedule in this case proposed last week by the plaintiffs and the defendants.
The plaintiffs – 683 Capital Partners, LP, Shipco Transport Inc., Sergey Regukh, Brian Armstrong, and E-Global Trade and Finance Group, Inc., as well as the defendants – Global Brokerage, Inc. (f/k/a FXCM, Inc.), Dror Niv, and William Ahdout have agreed on certain modification of the operative scheduling order.
The changes aim to allow sufficient time to complete fact depositions and written discovery responses prior to the close of fact discovery. The plaintiffs and the defendants say that they have worked diligently to schedule or complete the depositions of seven fact witnesses and two Rule 30(b)(6) witnesses in November and December 2020, but they have also agreed to conduct seven additional depositions in 2021.
Accordingly, they requested and the Court granted an additional two weeks to complete these depositions in advance of the close of fact discovery. The parties also requested a six-day extension of (1) the deadline for responses to interrogatories and requests for admission and (2) the close of all fact discovery to allow the Parties to incorporate any deposition testimony into their written discovery responses before the fact discovery period closes. These requests were all granted.
Judge Moses, however, stressed that no further extensions will be granted absent compelling circumstances.
Let’s recall that the case stems from the events from February 2017, when FXCM reached settlements with the CFTC and NFA, in a move that led to its exit from the US retail FX market. The price of FXCM’s securities plummeted after the regulatory settlements were announced, thereby damaging investors in FXCM Inc.
The plaintiffs brought this class action suit against FXCM, Dror Niv and William Ahdout, alleging that, from March 15, 2012 until February 6,2017, the defendants committed securities fraud in violation of Sections IO(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule l0(b)-5.
Specifically, the plaintiffs allege that the defendants were responsible for false or misleading statements with respect to FXCM’s purported agency-trading model and FXCM’s relationship with another company, Effex Capital.