The CFTC has published the final rule imposing requirements on SDs and MSPs with respect to the treatment of collateral posted by their counterparties to margin, guarantee or secure uncleared swaps in the Federal Register. The final rule also includes revisions to ensure that securities held in a portfolio margining account that is a futures or Cleared Swaps Customer Account constitute "customer property," and that the owners of such accounts constitute "customers." The rule will be effective on January 6, 2014. Lofchie Comment: As we had previously commented, the policy that underlies the

CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler spoke before the Futures Industry Association ("FIA") 2013 Futures and Options Expo, focusing on past, current and future revisions to the regulations governing the swaps market. Chairman Gensler first pointed out how the swaps market, which is $400 trillion in size, has dwarfed the $30 trillion futures market. Asserting that Adam Smith had focused on the importance of market transparency in The Wealth of Nations, Gensler stated that the first major reform in the swaps market was making it more transparent. According to Gensler, the public can now see the price and

The CFTC filed a civil enforcement action against Donald R. Wilson and his company, DRW Investments, LLC ("DRW"), with unlawfully manipulating and attempting to manipulate the price of a futures contract. The Complaint alleges that Mr. Wilson and DRW manipulated the IDEX USD Three-Month Interest Rate Swap Futures Contract ("Contract") from at least January 2011 to August 2011. The CFTC asserts that Mr. Wilson and DRW submitted "false" bids, in various prescribed time windows, that DRW knew could not be accepted for the purpose of manipulating the value of the Contract, whose value was based

The CFTC filed an enforcement action against Illinois resident James C. Yadgir, charging him with exceeding the CME's speculative position limits in live cattle futures contracts and feeder cattle futures contracts. The CFTC Complaint alleges that Yadgir, a CME Floor Broker and Trader, violated CEA provisions which prohibit any person from holding futures contract positions or options in such contracts in excess of established CFTC-approved speculative position limits. According to the Complaint, Yadgir held an open net position in April 2011 live cattle future contracts that exceeded his 550

The SEC has announced the appointment of David A. Glockner as director of the Chicago Regional Office. Mr. Glockner will oversee the Chicago office's enforcement and examination operations covering a nine-state region in the Midwest. He will join the agency in early December. See: SEC Press Release.