The CFTC issued an Order filing and simultaneously settling charges that Capital Market Services, LLC ("CMS"), a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant ("FCM") and former retail foreign exchange dealer ("RFED"), failed to comply with minimum financial requirements for FCMs and RFEDs. According to the Order, CFTC rules state that an FCM must maintain adjusted net capital ("ANC") equal to or in excess of the greatest of $1,000,000 or various other measures, including the "amount of [ANC] required by a registered futures association of which it is a member." The Order stated that CMS did not

The SEC charged the co-owner of Visionary Trading LLC with manipulative trading of publicly traded stocks through an illegal practice known as "layering" or "spoofing," as well as registration violations. According to the SEC press release, layering is when a trader places orders with no intention of having them executed, but rather to trick others into buying or selling a stock at an artificial price driven by the orders that the trader later cancels. The SEC investigation found that Joseph Dondero, co-owner of New Jersey-based Visionary Trading, repeatedly used this strategy to induce other

On April 3, President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order declaring a national emergency with respect to the situation in South Sudan. The Order is based on a determination that the widespread violence and unrest in that country – including human rights abuses and attacks on peacekeepers and humanitarian operations – pose a threat to U.S. foreign policy and national security. The Order does not target the country of South Sudan, but rather those persons (individuals and entities), including leaders of any militant groups or other entities responsible for or complicit in, or found to have

On Tuesday, April 8, the Senate Committee on Agriculture will hold a business meeting in which it will, among other things, vote on the following CFTC nominations: Timothy G. Massad, of Connecticut, to be Chairman and a Commissioner of the CFTC; Sharon Y. Bowen, of New York, to be a Commissioner of the CFTC; and J. Christopher Giancarlo, of New Jersey, to be a Commissioner of the CFTC. Delta Strategy Group Comment : The Senate Agriculture Committee scheduled a business meeting for April 8 to vote on the nominations of the three CFTC Commissioner appointees. All are expected to be reported out

The SEC announced that the whistleblower who received the first award under the agency's new whistleblower program will receive an additional $150,000 payout after the SEC collected additional funds in the case. The whistleblower has now been awarded a total of nearly $200,000 since the award was announced on August 21, 2012. The SEC stated it expects to collect additional money from defendants in this case, as some are making payments under a periodic payment schedule ordered by the court. See: SEC Press Release. See also: SEC Office of the Whistleblower Page; SEC Order Issuing First Award