On July 23, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) voted 3-2 to approve a final rule (Final Rule) on the cross-border application of certain swap provisions under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA)....more
On June 25, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) held an open meeting and voted unanimously to approve a final rule prohibiting post-trade name give-up for swaps executed anonymously on a swap...more
On January 30, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) voted 3-2 to issue a proposed rulemaking on speculative position limits (the Proposal). The Proposal would apply spot month-only federal...more
2/19/2020
/ Amended Rules ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Commodity Futures Contracts ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Position Limits ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Swaps
On January 30, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) unanimously approved proposed amendments (SEF Proposed Rules) to CFTC regulations related to the execution of package transactions, the correction of error...more
On July 25, 2019, the Ninth Circuit reinstated the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) lawsuit in CFTC v. Monex Credit Co.,1 interpreting the CFTC’s Dodd-Frank enforcement authority under Commodity Exchange Act...more
7/31/2019
/ Administrative Authority ,
Appeals ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Commodity Futures Contracts ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fraud ,
Price Manipulation ,
Reversal ,
Swaps
In 2018, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) began operating with a full complement of five commissioners for the first time since 2014. Soon thereafter, it held a rare open meeting to propose major...more
1/22/2019
/ CCPs ,
CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Jurisdiction ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Swap Execution Facilities ,
Swaps
Few price manipulation cases brought by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) ever go to trial. The CFTC case filed against the trading firm DRW Investments LLC (and its CEO) was the exception to that rule and would...more
12/15/2018
/ Bench Trial ,
CFTC ,
Commodities Traders ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Commodity Futures Contracts ,
Dismissals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Intent ,
Interest Rate Swaps ,
Market Manipulation ,
Price Manipulation ,
Standard of Review
This is the second edition of The Distributed Ledger, a periodic publication covering the latest trends and developments in blockchain technology, digital assets and smart contracts. In this issue, we examine the SEC’s new...more
11/8/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
CNIL ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Data Controller ,
Data Processors ,
Digital Assets ,
EU ,
FATF ,
FinHub ,
FinTech ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
International Data Transfers ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Startups ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations ,
Virtual Currency
This is the inaugural issue of The Distributed Ledger, a periodic publication covering the latest trends and developments in blockchain technology, digital assets and smart contracts. In this edition, we examine a federal...more
10/16/2018
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
Fraud ,
Misappropriation ,
NYDFS ,
Popular ,
Research and Development ,
Smart Contracts ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Legislatures ,
Trade Market Abuse ,
Trading Platforms ,
Virtual Currency ,
Young Lawyers
On March 6, 2018, Judge Jack B. Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled that virtual currencies are commodities under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and therefore subject to the...more
3/8/2018
/ Administrative Authority ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Jurisdiction ,
Market Manipulation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Standing ,
Trial Court Orders ,
Virtual Currency
On January 29, 2018, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced the filing of eight anti-spoofing enforcement actions: three settlements with financial institutions and five complaints filed in federal district...more
2/6/2018
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Buyers ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Extradition ,
Financial Institutions ,
Futures ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Sellers ,
Settlement ,
Spoofing ,
Swap Execution Facilities ,
Swaps ,
Vagueness
On December 15, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) released its proposed interpretation of the term “actual delivery” with respect to virtual currency retail commodity transactions. A retail...more
Both U.S. and European Union (EU) law require that certain swaps and derivatives trades take place only on approved trading platforms. On October 13, 2017, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) Chairman J....more
On August 7, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) announced a settlement for a civil penalty of $600,000 with the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU) for alleged spoofing violations, with...more
8/16/2017
/ Appeals ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodities Traders ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Japan ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Spoofing ,
Vagueness
The U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York recently dismissed a class action lawsuit alleging, among other claims, that a large number of entities and individuals in the market for producing, refining and...more
7/7/2017
/ Antitrust Violations ,
CFTC ,
Class Action ,
CME NYMEX ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
International Litigation ,
Market Manipulation ,
Morrison v National Australia Bank ,
Oil & Gas ,
Price Manipulation ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Violations ,
Sherman Act
On May 30, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) published final rule changes that substantially revise Rule 1.31 (Revised Rule) to modernize record-keeping obligations for any person required by...more
The U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York recently dismissed a class action lawsuit alleging that Total, S.A., Total Gas & Power North America, Inc., and Total Gas & Power Limited (collectively, “Total”)...more
4/19/2017
/ Actual Injuries ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Class Action ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Disgorgement ,
Dismissals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FERC ,
Fraud ,
Market Manipulation ,
Monopolization ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Pleading Standards ,
Price Manipulation ,
Private Right of Action ,
Sherman Act ,
Standing
Recently introduced legislation suggests that Republicans and Democrats in post-election Congress will be looking in very different directions on how to amend the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act...more
7/29/2016
/ Basel III ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Cross-Border ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
FDIC ,
Financial Institutions ,
FSOC ,
FX Forwards ,
Political Parties ,
Presidential Elections ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Swaps
On April 4, 2016, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) proposed guidance that would exclude certain capacity contracts in electric power markets (capacity contracts) and natural gas peaking supply contracts from...more
In two separate Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) enforcement actions before district courts in New York and Chicago, the CFTC has asked each court to adopt holdings that would significantly enhance the CFTC’s...more
As interest in bitcoin derivatives has increased, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has turned more of its attention toward virtual currencies. For a little more than a year, at least two trading facilities...more
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) recently took a series of actions confirming views expressed late last year by CFTC Chairman Timothy Massad that "[d]erivatives contracts based on a virtual currency represent...more
10/2/2015
/ Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Jurisdiction ,
Popular ,
SEFs ,
Swap Trading ,
Swaps ,
Virtual Currency
Market participants that enter into uncleared swaps should expect to receive notifications from swap dealer (SD) and major swap participant (MSP) counterparties regarding segregation of initial margin for swaps. Dodd-Frank...more
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) recently adopted several rules to improve large trader reporting, facilitate segregation of customer swap margin and enhance customer protections for futures and...more
11/13/2013
/ CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Customer Funds Protection ,
Derivatives Clearing Organizations ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs) ,
Major Swap Participants ,
Mandatory Clearing Requirements ,
Margin Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Segregation Requirements ,
Swap Dealers ,
Swaps
End users of swaps should be aware of three impending deadlines for complying with new Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulations....more