On April 6, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Office of Customer Education and Outreach (OCEO) issued a Customer Advisory, reminding investors to understand fully how commodity futures markets, physical markets and securities markets differ before engaging in trading activity based on tips or other information communicated through social media.
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FINRA Issues Regulatory Notice Regarding Sales Practice Obligations With Respect to Oil-Linked Exchange-Traded Products
By Susan Light, Michael T. Foley & Gregory A. Uffner on
Posted in Broker-Dealer
On May 15, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued a regulatory notice (the Notice) reminding firms of their obligations in connection with oil-linked exchange-traded products (ETPs). In light of the practical difficulties involved in investing directly in commodities such as oil, commodity-linked ETPs, which often track commodity futures or futures indices rather than the underlying spot commodity, can provide investors with exposure to such commodities. Due to their complexity, ETPs may not be well understood by investors, as the products may be linked to unfamiliar indices or reference benchmarks. As the crude oil market has recently endured extraordinary conditions, several oil-linked ETPs have experienced significant volatility and lost a substantial percentage of their value.
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CFTC and Financial Services Agency of Japan Issue Joint Statement on Comparability of Derivatives Trading Venues
By James M. Brady & Kevin M. Foley on
Posted in CFTC, Derivatives
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Financial Services Agency of Japan (JFSA) have issued a joint statement on the comparability of certain derivatives trading venues in the United States and Japan.
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SEC Disapproves Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Products
By Janet M. Angstadt & James M. Brady on
Posted in Broker-Dealer
The Securities and Exchange Commission, acting through authority delegated to the Division of Trading and Markets (Division), disapproved proposals by the New York Stock Exchange Arca Exchange and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe) BZX Exchange to list bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs) for trading. Both exchanges previously filed proposals to list ETPs that invest in bitcoin futures and/or related derivative instruments.
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