Takeaways: •‘Forward Contracts’ on securities that (1) cannot be legally transferred, or (2) are subject to transfer restrictions at the time of contract, may now be considered ‘security-based swaps’ and subject to the...more
Simple Agreements for Future Tokens pose difficult and controversial legal questions under U.S. securities, commodities and tax laws. SAFT holders face significant difficulties in securing liquidity, and regulatory issues...more
The proposed interpretation would further clarify the CFTC’s jurisdiction over virtual currency platforms that facilitate retail commodity transactions. On December 15, 2017, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission...more
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank” or the “Act”) authorizes the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) to comprehensively regulate energy trading activities. Dodd-Frank is...more
On November 14, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Divisions of Clearing and Risk, Market Oversight and Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight (the Divisions) issued guidance to swap execution facilities (SEFs) and...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on July 11, 2013 adopted Rule 15b12-1 (“Final Rule”) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as amended (“Exchange Act”) in order to allow market participants to continue...more
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) recently adopted three final rules pursuant to Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Customer Protection Act that impact the manner in which end-users’ cleared...more
Many corporate credit agreements are supported by subsidiary guarantees. Those guarantees often include not only the guaranty of the obligations under the credit agreement but also any related swap agreements. The CFTC has...more
The National Futures Association (NFA) has amended the financial requirements applicable to member futures commission merchants (FCMs) acting as counterparties in foreign exchange (forex) transactions...more
Standards for banking organizations regulated by the Federal Reserve for Retail Forex are generally comparable to rules adopted by other regulators. ...more
Often in connection with commercial loans, borrowers will enter into hedging transactions (“swaps”) for the purpose of mitigating interest rate, commodity or currency risk. Such swaps will frequently be entered into directly...more
In light of the numerous regulatory changes triggered by the definition of “swap” taking effect on October 12, Commodity Futures Trading Commission staff released a series of no-action letters and interpretations late last...more
On October 12, 2012, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) and Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) final rules to further define the term “swap” (among other terms) became effective. The effective date of...more
In a no-action letter issued on October 12, 2012 (the “No-Action Letter”), the Office of the General Counsel (“OGC”) of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) clarified a number of matters relating to the...more
Section 723(a)(2) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act amended Section 2(e) of the Commodity Exchange Act, or CEA to provide that “it shall be unlawful for any person, other than an [eligible...more
In This Issue: Excerpt from Year-End Tax Planning Steps for Private Equity The last time the Bush tax cuts were set to expire at the end of 2010, we saw numerous clients scrambling to execute end-of-the-year...more