Just when I thought it couldn’t be worse after MFGlobal, another big retail brokerage serve has collpased. PFGBest with between 500million to a billion dollars in assets been missapropriating funds and has a 200 million dollar short fall. As if confidence wasn’t low already, we now have another name to add to MF and worldspreads. And worse this happened in the USA with the tough regulation of the NFA & CFTC. So where there is a will there is a way despite the regulations put upon you. I cant imagine this helping confidence at all, many more are affected, and that is more people out of the futures market.
Some further details:

On or about June 29, 2012 PFG reported to NFA that it had approximately $400 million in segregated funds, of which more than $225 million were purportedly on deposit at U.S. Bank
On or about July 9, 2012, NFA received information indicating that PFG’s Chairman may have falsified bank records
On July 9, 2012, NFA made inquiry with US Bank and learned that rather than the $225 million that PFG had reported as being on deposit at US Bank just days earlier, PFG had only approximately $5 million on deposit at U.S. Bank.
Translation: another $220 million segregated account pillage has just taken place, in the vein of none other than Jon Corzine and MF Global.

The money has now officially vaporized.

It is truly wonderful of the NFA to finally get involved, after PFG’s clients have lost about 98% of their cash held with the firm.