NFA takes emergency enforcement action against Wilton, Conn. commodity pool operator Vespula Capital Management LLC

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For Immediate Release
May 20, 2026

For more information contact:

Christie von Ohlen, 312-781-1497, [email protected] McCarthy, 312-781-1357, [email protected]

NFA takes emergency enforcement action against Wilton, Conn. commodity pool operator Vespula Capital Management LLC

May 20, Chicago-NFA has taken an emergency enforcement action against Vespula Capital Management LLC, an NFA Member commodity pool operator located in Wilton, Connecticut. NFA's action also names Joel Kirkham Johnson, a principal and the sole associated person of Vespula and an NFA Associate located in Orem, Utah.

The Member and Associate Responsibility Action (MRA/ARA) does not suspend, expel or otherwise affect Vespula and Johnson's NFA membership and associate membership statuses. However, the MRA/ARA's requirements and undertakings are necessary to protect participants in VCM Strategic Opportunity Fund LP (VCM Strategic Fund), a commodity pool that Vespula operates, as well as the investing public, NFA Members and other financial institutions because NFA has reason to believe that approximately $2 million in assets belonging to VCM Strategic Fund have been dissipated via transfers to entities owned and/or controlled by Vespula, Johnson and/or Vespula's chief executive officer, Jeffery Lee Tomasulo, to the detriment of the VCM Strategic Fund participants.

The MRA/ARA is effective immediately and prohibits Vespula, Johnson and any other person acting on their behalf from:

• Soliciting or accepting any funds for investment in VCM Strategic Fund or any other commodity pools or other investment vehicles over which Vespula, Johnson or any other person acting on their behalf exercises control until Vespula has submitted a disclosure document for VCM Strategic Fund that NFA has reviewed and accepted, which discusses the circumstances of this MRA/ARA;

• Disbursing or transferring any funds from any bank, trading or other types of accounts in the name of Vespula, VCM Strategic Fund, or from the account of any other commodity pool or other investment vehicle that Vespula or Johnson operates or over which they exercise control, without prior approval from NFA; and

• Placing any trades, except to liquidate existing positions, in any brokerage account(s) that is in the name of Vespula, VCM Strategic Fund, or any other pool or other investment vehicle over which Vespula, Johnson or any other person acting on their behalf exercises control.

The restrictions and undertakings specified above will remain in effect until Vespula and/or Johnson demonstrate to NFA's satisfaction that they have complied with them and obtained a full accounting of VCM Strategic Fund's books and records, including the use of proceeds from the VCM Strategic Fund and the transfers of the Fund's assets to/from entities owned and/or controlled by Vespula, Johnson and/or Tomasulo, or over which any person acting on their behalf exercises control.

Vespula or Johnson may request a hearing before NFA's Hearing Committee.

The complete text of the emergency action is available on NFA's website.