The CFTC Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight (DSIO) today announced the issuance of a no-action letter providing for a waiver procedure for associated persons of swap dealers that would, in the absence of such a procedure, have been prevented from working in the swaps business because they were subject to statutory disqualification. Under the terms of the letter, swap registrants will have to obtain a waiver with respect to such persons from the NFA. Lofchie Comment: Its obviously great that the CFTC issued this letter, as, in its absence, persons that had, for example, a drunk

The CFTC released responses to to Frequently Asked Questions concerning swap entities. The CFTC staff will continue to evaluate the interpretive questions that are received from interested persons and will release additional clarifying information as appropriate. View FAQs in full here (links externally to CFTC website).

SIFMA has provided two "important and time sensitive" additional comments to the IRS and Treasury with respect to FATCA. These comments supplement SIFMA's original comments that were made on April 30. First, SIFMA is concerned that the proposed FATCA regulations could be interpreted to require withholding by brokers on the purchase of securities from non compliant FFIs rather than by brokers effecting sales. They note that while brokers effecting sales have systems in place for backup withholding if their customer does not provide a W-9, brokers representing purchasers lack such a system and

CME Group issued this Advisory Notice to (i) notify the marketplace that the CME ClearPort business model will be transitioned to promote direct execution of the CME ClearPort slate of futures contracts and options on futures contracts by means of trading on CME Globex and on the trading floor, and (ii) inform that NYMEX Market Regulation Advisory Notice RA1201-6 (Rule 525 Core Principle 9(B)(iii) Trades) is being superseded by this Notice as September 26, 2012. Rule 525 will be formally withdrawn upon the effective date of the block trade rules that NYMEX submitted to the CFTC on October 1

U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry which is tasked with oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), released a statement on the implementation of the CFTC's new "Swaps Definitions" rules. Here is an excerpt from the Senator's remarks: "On the heels of the federal district court's decision to block the CFTC proposed ‘position limits' rule on trades of derivatives and swaps, we brace ourselves for the results of new regulations meant to bring transparency to the market that have in reality brought