CFTC Staff Letters

CFTC Staff Letters provides Letters from 2008 and later. For Letters published before 2008 visit the Letters Archive page.

PDF Description
PDF Image 12-10 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: DCR
Regulation Parts: 4d(f)(2), 4d(f)(3), 4d(f)(4), 4d(f)(6)
Tags: FCM, IB, Unregistered
Issuance Date:
Description:

Division of Clearing and Risk staff issued a no action preserving the regulatory status quo with respect to swaps cleared by a DCO (and related) collateral which expires on the compliance date for Part 22 regulations, November 8, 2012.


PDF Image 12-09 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: DCR
Regulation Parts: 1.73
Tags: FCM
Issuance Date:
Description:

Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Division of Clearing and Risk (DCR) today announced an extension of time for compliance in order to provide additional time for market participants to coordinate on the communication of limits for give-ups and bunched orders for futures and swaps. This extension of time is intended to provide sufficient time to transition to fully compliant pre-trade screening no later than June 1, 2013. Additionally, DCR also announced the issuance of an extension of time for compliance from pre-trade screening requirements for those transactions executed on DCMs that do not have a system permitting FCMs to set pre-execution limits, until the earlier of the date on which the DCM implements such a system, or June 1, 2013.


PDF Image 12-08 Letter Type: Interpretative
Division: DCR
Regulation Parts: 39.13
Tags: Risk
Issuance Date:
Description:

The Division of Clearing and Risk issued a letter interpreting Regulation 39.13(g)(8)(ii) (customer margin rule) to clarify that registered derivatives clearing organizations, in establishing customer initial margin requirements, may preserve historical practices by which customer initial margin requirements are based on the type of customer account and reflect the application of prudential standards that result in FCMs collecting customer initial margin at levels commensurate with the risk presented by each type of customer account.


PDF Image 12-07 Letter Type: Interpretative
Division: DMO
Regulation Parts: 151.5
Tags: Exemption, Hedging
Issuance Date:
Description:

The Division of Market Oversight issued an interpretation addressing whether, under Part 151 of the Commission’s regulations, an electric company may treat as bona fide hedging transactions certain derivative transactions that reduce the price risk associated with its unfilled anticipated requirements for natural gas, even though it has entered into some long-term, firm purchases of natural gas at an unfixed price. The interpretation notes that unfilled anticipated requirements may be recognized as the basis of a bona fide hedging position or transaction under Commission Regulation 151.5(a)(2)(ii)(C) when a commercial enterprise has entered into long-term, unfixed-price supply or requirements contracts as the price risk of such “unfilled” anticipated requirements is not offset by an unfixed price forward contract as the price risk remains with the commercial, even though the commercial enterprise has contractually assured a supply of the commodity. Instead, the price risk continues until the forward contract’s price is fixed; once the price is fixed on the supply contract, the commercial enterprise no longer has price risk and the derivative position, to the extent the position is above an applicable speculative position limit, must be liquidated in an orderly manner in accordance with sound commercial practices.


PDF Image 12-06 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: DMO
Regulation Parts: 32.3
Tags: Trade Option
Issuance Date:
Description:

Staff No-Action Relief: Temporary Relief for Persons Eligible for the Trade Option Exemption from the Requirements of §§ 32.3(b) and 32.3(c)(1), (3), (4) and (5) of the Commission’s Regulations.


PDF Image 12-05 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: N/A, DMO
Regulation Parts: 151
Tags: Position Limits, Swaps
Issuance Date:
Description:

Staff No-Action Relief: Temporary Relief from the Aggregation Requirements of the Commission’s Rule Regarding Position Limits for Futures and Swaps.


PDF Image 12-04 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: DMO
Regulation Parts: 20.4
Tags:
Issuance Date:
Description:

Staff No-Action Relief: Temporary Relief for Non-Clearing Member Swap Dealers from the Requirements of § 20.4 of the Commission’s Regulations Regarding Large Swaps Trader Reporting for Physical Commodities.


PDF Image 12-03 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: DSIO
Regulation Parts: 4.5, 4.13
Tags: CPO, Exclusion, Exemption, Registration
Issuance Date:
Description:

No-Action Relief from Rescission of Regulation 4.13(a)(4) and Amendments to Regulation 4.5.


PDF Image 12-02 Letter Type: No-Action
Division: N/A, DMO
Regulation Parts: 20.4
Tags:
Issuance Date:
Description:

Staff No-Action Relief: Temporary Relief for Clearing Members from the Requirements of Ownership-Level Reporting of § 20.4 of the Commission’s Regulations Regarding Large Swaps Trader Reporting for Physical Commodities.


PDF Image 12-01 Letter Type: Interpretative
Division: DSIO
Regulation Parts: 4.34, 4.35
Tags: Disclosures
Issuance Date:
Description:

The Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight issued an interpretation regarding the time period for which past performance is required to be disclosed by persons required to register as CTAs because they engage in off-exchange retail foreign currency transactions (“retail forex”). Such persons (“Forex CTAs”) are required to disclose performance information for the period beginning October 18, 2010, the date upon which the Commission’s regulations governing retail forex became effective. A Forex CTA that chooses to present past performance information for any period of time prior to October 18, 2010 must do so in accordance with the time period as specified in Regulation 4.35(a)(5), must include all accounts directed by the Forex CTA, must present the information in the format specified in Regulation 4.35, and must have and maintain adequate books and records to substantiate the information.