CFTC Staff Letters

Exemptive relief granted to a CPO of a pool from the audit requirements of Commission regulation 4.22(d) with respect to the financial statements in the annual reports of the pool. The participants in the pool are three charitable remainder trusts formed by the sole owner and CEO of the CPO, who is also the sole income beneficiary of the trusts. The trustee of the trusts is the President of the CPO. The CPO has provided a waiver from the trustee.

Exemptive relief that was provided in CFTC Staff Letters 14-35 and 14-36 with respect to the requirements of Commission regulations 4.21, 4.22, and 4.25 was extended to the successor CPO of the trusts and series in those letters, subject to certain conditions, including the following: (1) the material business terms of the trusts and series do not change; (2) the investment experience of the shareholders does not change; (3) the only material change is the substitution of the CPO; (4) the representations made by the CPO in CFTC Letters 14-35 and 14-36 remain applicable; and (5) the successor CPO complies with the terms and conditions for relief set forth for the CPO in CFTC Letters 14-35 and 14-36.

Exemptive relief granted to a CPO of certain segregated series of a pool that began operations in July 2014 from the audit requirements of Commission regulation 4.22(d) with respect to the financial statements in the 2014 annual reports of the segregated series. Each segregated series has one participant and the CPO has provided waivers from the participant in each segregated series.

Exemptive relief granted to a CPO of a segregated portfolio of a pool from the audit requirements of Commission regulation 4.22(d)with respect to the financial statements in the 2014 annual report of the segregated portfolio. The CPO has provided a waiver from the sole participant of the segregated portfolio.

The CPO of a commodity pool requested relief from the Annual Report filing and certification requirements in Regulations 4.22(c) and (d), and represented that the pool is closing, having been entirely proprietary since its inception; therefore, DSIO granted exemptive relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 from the certification requirement in Regulation 4.22(d), conditioned upon the filing of an unaudited Annual Report in compliance with Regulation 4.22(c).

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3) to allow the CPO to file an annual report for the pool for the period from January 1, 2014, through January 31, 2015. The CPO determined in January 2015 to wind up the pool’s operations. By January 31, the pool had permanently ceased trading and completed the winding up process by making its final distributions to the pool’s seven participants, all of whom consented by waiver to receive a 13-month annual report. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from January 1, 2014 to January 31, 2015.

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3) to allow the CPO to file a 14-month annual report for the pool for the period from November 3, 2014, the date the CPO began operations, through December 31, 2015. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from November 3, 2014 to December 31, 2015.

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3) to allow the CPO to file a 14-month annual report for the pool for the period from January 1, 2015, the date the pool began trading, through February 29, 2016, the close of the pool’s 2015-16 fiscal year. The CPO submitted a signed waiver from the pool’s participant, indicating consent to receive such a report. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from January 1, 2015 to February 29, 2016.

The CPO of a commodity pool requested exemptive relief from Regulation 4.22(d)(1), which requires the financial statements included in Annual Reports to be audited. The CPO submitted waivers from all pool participants, consenting to receive an unaudited Annual Report. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 from Regulation 4.22(d), permitting the filing and distribution of an unaudited 2014 annual report. Such relief is also conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report in full compliance with Regulations 4.22(c) and (d) that covers the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years.

The CPO of a commodity pool that began trading in June 2014 requested exemptive relief from Regulations 4.22(c) and (d). The CPO submitted waivers from all pool participants, which included two proprietary and three outside investors. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 from Regulation 4.22(d), permitting the filing and distribution of an unaudited 2014 annual report. Such relief is also conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report in full compliance with Regulations 4.22(c) and (d) that covers the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years.