Please take a moment to watch the video below of CFTC Commissioner Christopher Giancarlo’s thoughts and concerns about the CFTC’s proposed Reg AT:...
Ask NFA–October 2016
As your industry advocate, the NIBA provides many services which help your business stay in compliance with NFA regulations. “Ask the NFA,” is the way you can ask questions about those regulations and compliance requirements without having to call NFA directly. Just email us at [email protected] and we will get the answers for you. Please keep in mind the purpose of this contact is to keep the lines of communication between the NFA and NIBA members. This month’s questions were selected from those submitted by NIBA members. The answers were supplied by NFA staff. “I was wondering if you could…...
NFA Proposes “Financial Health” Reporting Requirements for CPOs and CTAs
In an effort to better understand and monitor the financial health of certain members of the National Futures Association (“NFA”), the NFA has submitted a proposal to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) that would require commodity pool operators (“CPOs”) and commodity trading advisors (“CTAs”) to report additional information about their financial condition on a regular basis. The recent proposal comes two years after NFA previously sought comments on possible minimum net capital requirements for CPOs and CTAs. Financial reporting may not, at first blush, seem as onerous as minimum net capital requirements. However, financial reporting will nonetheless require the…...
NIBA “What’s on the Radar at the NFA” Conference Session Recap
NIBA’s September 14 Conference opened up first thing in the morning with a panel discussion on none other than “What’s on the radar at the NFA!” By the look on the faces of the crowed audience, the topics had many eyes wide open…more than your average cup of Latte can do in the morning. The panel, which was moderated by Robert DeMuria of Compliance Supervisors International, Inc., consisted of very reputable and qualified individuals: Joseph Mazza, CPA of Compliance Supervisors International, Inc.; Anibal Carlo, Manager of National Futures Association and Michael Coglianese, CPA of Michael Coglianese CPA, P.C. The discussion…...
NIBA Compliance Debate Recap
Inspired by this year’s presidential debate, the NIBA hosted its first ever compliance debate at a conference for their 25th year anniversary held at the CME Group on Sept. 14. Robert DeMuria, Vice President and Co-founder of Compliance Supervisors International, and Alexandra Lively, OSMTH United Nations Delegate, moderated the debate with an outstanding group of industry professionals. The panelists included Joseph Mazza, President and Co-founder of Compliance Supervisors International, James Bibbings, Founder and President of Turnkey Trading Partners, Patricia Cushing, Director of Compliance at National Futures Association, Scott Williamson, Deputy Regional Counsel at the CFTC, Erin Middleton, Senior Rules and…...
NFA Notice to Members
On August 24, 2016, NFA notified members that effective 2017, they will institute electronic voting. An essential component of the new process is the designation of your Executive Representative – the only person from your firm who will be allowed to cast votes in the contested NFA director elections, and to submit nomination petitions. NIBA supports this initiative. Mike Burke, IIB representative to the NFA Board presented both the idea of electronic voting and a designated firm rep to NIBA Board Members when he was first elected — it received an unanimously positive response. NIBA believes NFA’s new process for…...
NIBA’s First-Ever Compliance Debate – September 14th
Do you occasionally feel like there is a huge “gray area” surrounding a regulation? Did you ever think there must be a second or even a third way to approach compliance with a particular rule? Inspired by this year’s Presidential Debates, the NIBA is hosting our first-ever compliance debate! On September 14, during this year’s 25th Anniversary Conference, regulators, attorneys, compliance consultants and industry representatives will take the stage to debate the Pros and Cons of issues where multiple rules could apply, or there just might be more than one way to comply with regulation. We have an all-star line…...
CFTC & SEC Registration Considerations for Private Fund Managers
Nicole M. Kuchera and Joseph M. Mannon, Vedder Price August 23, 2016 This article provides a simple three step guide to registration considerations for managers of various types of private fund vehicles, such as for hedge funds, fund of funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, real estate funds and commodity pools. Registration considerations under both the Commodity Exchange Act of 1936, as amended (the “CEA”), and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”), are outlined below. Registration considerations for non-U.S. jurisdictions are not addressed in this summary. The following discussion is provided as a…...
The CFTC Proposes Significant Relief For Non-U.S. Market Participants
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC“), which regulates commodity interest transactions such as swaps and futures contracts, has requested comments from industry market participants on its proposed amendments to CFTC Rule 3.10. CFTC Rule 3.10 sets forth the exemptions that may apply to non-U.S. market participants, and the rule impacts brokers, advisers and fund operators. The CFTC’s stated goal, subject to receiving comments, is to expand the exemptions from registration for non-U.S. firms engaged in commodity interest transactions in the U.S. on behalf of customers located outside of the U.S. The proposal also seeks to simplify the exemptions’ requirements.…...
Just Following Orders
There can be no doubt about the vast, if not monumental, effect that modern technology has brought to the futures broker industry. Processes that were once the purview of man-made machinations, are now fully automated by the gently humming, and beguilingly autonomous computer processors and omnipotent trading platforms. Calculations are being made, trades entered and exited at a speed that would make Doc Brown giddy. Yet for all of this precocious computing power, there are still some elements of our trade that we may, from time to time, ply by hand. Order tickets, and time stamps more specifically, remain one…...