SIFMA released the following statement from acting president and CEO, Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr., regarding passage of several pieces of legislation by the House Agriculture Committee which aimed at amending, clarifying or improving Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act. "These bills will strike the so-called 'swap push-out provision,' which a number of regulators have said was unnecessary as well as clarify that non-financial end users will be exempt from capital and margin requirements. They will also clarify the treatment of inter-affiliate swaps, address extra-territorial application of derivatives

CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler delivered remarks before the International Monetary Fund Conference. Main topics discussed include: History and progress of the derivatives markets; Various missions of the CFTC, and how the public is benefiting from, according to Gensler: (i) greater access to the swaps market and the risk reduction that comes from centralized clearing; (ii) oversight of swap dealers; and (iii) transparency of seeing the price and volume of each swap transaction, available free of charge on a website like a modern-day tickertape; Changing markets, such as the increase in electronic

The SEC issued a no-action letter reaffirming its position as to when continuing commissions may be paid to retired associated persons. The letter permitted such commissions to be paid in respect of new accounts opened by the same customer. View letter in full here (links externally to SEC website). Cross-Reference(s): Exchange Act Section 15(a) [Registration and regulation of brokers and dealers]; Chapter 4 of Broker-Dealer Guide.

SIFMA submitted comments to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision ("BCBS") and the International Organization of Securities Commissions ("IOSCO") on the Second Consultative Document on Margin Requirements for Non-Centrally-Cleared Derivatives. Click here to view letter in full (links externally to SIFMA website). See also: SIFMA Comments on the Original Consultation in a letter dated September 28, 2012. Related News: "NAPF Responds to BIS and IOSCO Margin Requirements for Non-Centrally-Cleared Derivatives" (March 20, 2013); "MFA Submits Comments on Basel-IOSCO Second Consultative Document

The NAPF issued its comments in response to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision ("BCBS") and the International Organization of Securities Commissions' ("IOSCO") requests for comment as to the amount and handling of margin to be posted as part of OTC derivatives trades. The key points asserted by NAPF are as follows: Pension schemes use derivatives largely to hedge liabilities and, thereby, reduce risk. Extra costs or processes that provide a disincentive for pension schemes to use derivatives could in fact increase the degree of risk in the markets. The new margin requirements would