Whistleblower' alleges manipulation of Cboe volatility index - RRTS

An article in the WJS and the same news presented by Reuters today has concerned investors of allegations into the manipulation of the CBOE volatility index.

The VIX has taken a lot of attention at the start of this year with huge swings in the stock market as being Wall Street’s most widely followed gauge of future stock market volatility.

A law firm representing an “anonymous whistleblower” has alleged that the index is being manipulated, causing billions of dollars in losses a year to unwary investors, read an article in Reuters and the same in the WSJ. A letter was sent by the law firm on Monday to U.S. financial regulators.

"The letter, to both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, was provided by a Washington-based law firm which represents the anonymous person claiming to have held senior roles in the investment business.

Claims in the letter outline how trading firms have taken advantage of the way the Cboe Volatility Index .VIX is being calculated in order to manipulate the index. Financial products that track the VIX are at the center of the current stock market ructions that have seen U.S. benchmark equities fall in and out of 10 percent correction territory since late January," the RRTS article pointed out.