Streetwise Professor August 18, 2011 Prof. Craig Pirrong comments on the leak of confidential oil trading data and speculates that it is connected with the CFTC's likely adoption of a position limits: "The disclosures about the positions held by financial players will no doubt help shape the battlefield for that fight." "I cannot emphasize enough what an abuse this is. And it will hinder the CFTC going forward. The agency often relies on voluntary cooperation by market participants to supply data that helps it understand what is going on in the market, or to help develop policies. Is there any

Wall Street Journal August 18, 2011 The CFTC compiled a list of investors that placed large bets on oil prices before crude hit record highs in 2008. The list was dominated by banks, including Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, but it also included corporate icons, foreign pension funds and a few surprising members. The list, which offers a rare glimpse of the secretive world of oil trading investments tied to millions of barrels of oil in 2008 were held by a diverse group of at least 219 investors. The list could fuel calls for a crackdown on oil speculators, a label critics apply to those who

HM Courts Tribunals Service August 16, 2011 The Upper Tribunal has rejected an application to prohibit the disclosure and/or publication of a Decision Notice issued by the FSA on 6 May 2011. The Decision Notice contains a decision of the FSA to impose on "Swift Trade" a financial penalty pursuant to section 123(1) of FSMA for engaging in market abuse. On 9 June 2011 the Applicants applied to the High Court for permission to apply for judicial review of the decision of the FSA to publish the Decision Notice. The High Court granted permission to the Applicants to bring judicial review

Financial Services Authority August 16, 2011 The FSA has today fined Sir Ken Morrison pound;210,000 for breaching the Disclosure and Transparency Rules (" DTR") by failing to disclose his reduced shareholding and voting rights in Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc (" Wm Morrison"). Shortly after his retirement as Chairman of Wm Morrison, the company announced on 28 March 2008 that Sir Ken had a notifiable holding of voting rights of 6.38%. After the announcement on 28 March 2008 there were no further shareholding notifications made concerning Sir Ken's holdings until 1 March 2011 - just under three

NY Times August 17, 2011 Industry groups are examining possible legal challenges to the CFTC's plan to curb speculative trading. The catalyst has been a federal appeals court decision in July striking down an S.E.C. rule that would have made it easier for shareholders to nominate company directors. Until now, Wall Street relied largely on an army of lobbyists to chisel away at 300 new rules flowing from the S.E.C. and the CFTC, among other agencies. But while lobbying might yield the occasional loophole, judicial rulings can halt new rules altogether. Hal S. Scott, a professor at Harvard Law