Key Takeaways
- Disgraced Voyager CEO Stephen Ehrlich has now settled lawsuits with the FTC and the CFTC.
- In the latest CFTC settlement, Ehrlich agreed to repay $750,000 to Voyager creditors.
- He also faces a three-year CFTC trading and registration ban.
The former CEO of the now-bankrupt Voyager Digital, Stephen Ehrlich, has been handed a three-year trading ban and ordered to pay a $750,000 disgorgement to Voyager customers.
Announcing the resolution on Monday, Sep. 15, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said: “compensating victims and limiting a defendant’s ability to cause future harm” fall squarely within its mission.
Stephen Ehrlich’s Downfall
When Voyager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 2022, many balmed Ehrlich for the insolvency.
Under his leadership, the crypto hedge fund issued a series of risky loans, including 15,250 BTC and $350 million USDC that Three Arrows Capital (3AC) defaulted on.
The CFTC and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would later criticize Ehrlich for publicly reassuring customers that Voyager was well-capitalized, even as liquidity was deteriorating. Voyager’s depiction of investments as low-risk and secure also came under scrutiny.
In lawsuits filed in October 2023, both regulators accused the Voyager CEO of deceiving customers by issuing false statements.
Civil Fines Pile Up
The CFTC’s lawsuit charged Ehrlich with fraud and registration failures. Meanwhile, counts in the FTC’s litigation included misleading investors and making false or fraudulent statements to customers.
On June 27, 2025, Ehrlich settled the FTC charges, agreeing to a permanent ban on marketing or selling retail products or services used to buy, sell, deposit, or trade cryptocurrency.
He and his wife Francine were also ordered to pay a $2.8 million civil penalty.
A settlement with the CFTC was announced on Monday, Sep. 15. Under the terms of the agreement, Ehrlich agreed to pay a $750,000 disgorgement to Voyager customers, accepted a three-year ban from trading or registering with the CFTC, and was permanently enjoined from violating anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act.
Class Action Still Ongoing
Beyond regulatory enforcement, a class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of Voyager investors named Ehrlich alongside celebrity endorsers, Mark Cuban, Rob Gronkowski, Victor Oladipo, and Landon Cassill.
In May 2024, Gronkowski, Oladipo, and Cassill settled with the plaintiffs for $2.4 million. Ehrlich and Cuban continue to fight the litigation in court.
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James Morales is CCN’s blockchain and crypto policy reporter. He has been working in the news media since 2020, writing about topics such as payments, banking and financial technology. These days, he likes to explore the latest blockchain innovations and the evolving landscape of global crypto regulation.
With an educational background in social anthropology and media studies, James uses his platform as a journalist to explore how new technologies work, why they matter and how they might shape our future.
