Keith Wakefield, the former head of fixed income at IFS Securities, has been sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for securities and wire fraud. A jury found Wakefield guilty of making unauthorized speculative trades in Treasury bonds, which resulted in more than $30 million in losses for IFS Securities and its counterparties between January 2017 and August 2019. He was explicitly banned from such trading by the firm's CEO after losing $215,000 of IFS funds in late 2013.
In addition to the trading losses, Wakefield was found to have embezzled $820,000 by falsifying commission payments and the firm's books to conceal his unprofitable trades. Despite his decades of experience in fixed income, including roles at Cabrera Capital Markets and LaSalle Financial Services, Wakefield attributed the losses to unsophisticated errors, such as a missed trade and a "fat-finger" mistake during his court testimony. Prosecutors, however, emphasized his deliberate and knowing engagement in fraudulent activities.
The repercussions of Wakefield's actions were severe for IFS Securities. The Atlanta-based firm became unable to honor millions of dollars in fixed-income securities trades in August 2019 and subsequently declared bankruptcy in April 2020. Wakefield was convicted of one count of securities fraud and three counts of wire fraud, with each count carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years. The sentencing was handed down by U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger.
