In the video below, Steven Lofchie of Cadwalader interviews Scott Parsons of Delta Strategy Group on the significance of the ongoing CFTC Reauthorization Hearings taking place in Congress. See also: House Ag Subcommittee Hearing on the Future of the CFTC: End-User Perspectives (with Delta Strategy Group Hearing Summary) Senate Agriculture Committee Hearing: "Reauthorization of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ('CFTC')" (with Delta Strategy Group Hearing Summary).

FINRA's Corporate Secretary, Marcia Asquith, answered questions regarding FINRA's upcoming Board of Governors elections in an audio portion of a series of brief video segments entitled "A Few Minutes with FINRA." Asquith discussed FINRA's decision to allow candidates to petition to be elected for the remaining single seat in large firms and three seats in small firms rather than be nominated, as had been done in the past. Votes for the election may be placed from August 2 through August 6, 2013, by mail, internet, or in person, at the FINRA meeting in Washington, D.C. on August 6. More

The CFTC released results of a rule enforcement review completed by the Commission's Division of Market Oversight on the CME and CBOT.With respect to the period from November 1, 2010 to October 31, 2011, the Division assessed the Exchanges' compliance with Core Principles 4 and 5, pre- and post-Dodd-Frank Act, relating to the Exchanges' market surveillance program. The CFTC asserted that CME and CBOT procedures for monitoring "exchange for related position" transactions are inadequate. The CFTC provided the following recommendations: The Exchanges not grant retroactive hedge exemptions if a

The SEC has obtained a preliminary injunction and other relief against the Cyprus binary-based operations trading company, Banc de Binary, for offering and selling binary options to investors across the U.S. without first registering with the SEC. The options paid out a fixed amount if they were in the money; and otherwise zero. See: SEC Press Release; SEC Litigation Release.

SIFMA has submitted supplemental comments to the SEC regarding recently approved amendments to FINRA Rule 8313 (the "Proposal"), which governs the disclosure of disciplinary and other information by FINRA to the public. The Proposal includes disclosures about Expedited Proceeding under FINRA Rule 9554, as to which SIFMA had previously submitted comments. The SEC approved the FINRA rule on June 21, 2013, acknowledging that, "FINRA did not address concerns raised by the SIFMA Letter that were outside the scope of the proposed rule." SIFMA is now requesting that the SEC address the disclosure