Federal Bureau of Investigation agents on Tuesday arrested 48 foreign exchange brokers in connection with a probe into securities and currency fraud, according to a CNN/Money report.
The FBI swarmed on New York City's Two World Financial Center shortly after 3 p.m. ET and took away the traders in handcuffs, people on the scene told CNNfn.
The building is mainly occupied by Wall Street brokerage Merrill Lynch, but Merrill Lynch was not home to the arrested brokers, CNN/Money said.
"It's currency fraud, securities fraud," an agent at the scene of the arrests said.
FBI sources told CNN/Money that the Wall Street traders will be charged with swindling retail investors of an undisclosed amount of cash over the past year.
NBC reported the defendants scammed retail investors into thinking they were buying multimillion-dollar foreign exchange trades when it is not possible for those types of investors to participate in such deals.
Among those arrested were three brokers at the inter-dealer brokerage ICAP. Seven employees of Madison Deane and Associates Inc were also arrested, CNN/Money added.
At least two other firms were involved, sources said, adding none of the companies targeted were household names outside of the securities industry but are well known and regarded in the Wall Street community.
