News Centre

SEC Charges Former CEO In Tulsa With Misleading Investors About Liquidity Risks

Date 18/10/2011

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the co-founder of a Tulsa-based energy company with misleading investors in one of its subsidiaries about liquidity risks they faced from his energy trading.

Concurring Statement, Second Extension Of Temporary Exemptive Relief - CFTC Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia

Date 18/10/2011

As Yogi Berra famously proclaimed: “It is déjà vu all over again.” Yogi perfectly encapsulates my feelings today. We find ourselves again voting on a proposed order aimed at providing legal certainty in the form “temporary exemptive relief” for swap market participants that extends the soon to expire relief found in the Commission’s July 14, 2011 exemptive order (“July 14 Order”). This temporary relief is necessary because: (1) the Commission has not yet put forth final rules defining such key terms such as “swap” and “swap dealer”; and (2) certain exemptions and exclusions for transactions in exempt and excluded commodities currently relied upon by market participants will be repealed effective December 31, 2011. The proposal states: “[t]he Commission proposes that this further amendment to the July 14 Order is necessary to ensure that the same scope of the exemptive relief available before December 31, 2011 is available to all swaps and extends through July 16, 2012, at the latest.”

Speech Given By Mervyn King, Governor Of The Bank of England To The Institute Of Directors, St George’s Hall, Liverpool 18 October 2011

Date 18/10/2011

Mr Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen, 

Surrounded by the magnificent architecture of St George’s Hall, we are reminded of the benefits and the costs of exposure to the world economy.  Built at the peak of Liverpool’s mercantile fortunes, the Hall, and the other magnificent buildings of the cultural quarter, exhibit the prosperity derived from openness to trade.  Indeed, tonight is the anniversary of a grand banquet held here on 18th October 1860 to celebrate the opening of the public library and museum building that stands opposite.  Its construction had been financed by the guest of honour at the banquet that evening, William Brown, whose statue stands in the Hall today.  Brown had profited from transatlantic trade both as a merchant and by establishing a bank which financed trade – at the time a risky business.   In those days, finance and trade supported each other, and the city prospered.  But the subsequent history of St George’s Hall, which fell into neglect in the last century, illustrates Liverpool’s vulnerability to changes in the rest of the world.   

Statement Of Dissent, Position Limits For Futures And Swaps - CFTC Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia

Date 18/10/2011

I respectfully dissent from the action taken today by the Commission to issue final rules relating to position limits for futures and swaps. While I have a number of serious concerns with this final rule, my principal disagreement is with the Commission’s restrictive interpretation of the statutory mandate under Section 4a of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA” or “Act”) to establish position limits without making a determination that such limits are necessary and effective in relation to the identifiable burdens of excessive speculation on interstate commerce.

Russell Investments Expands Defensive And Dynamic Indexes To Global Markets - Russell's Innovative Investment Style Indexes Add Global Stock Coverage To Help Investors Better Navigate Increasingly Complex And Volatile Global Markets

Date 18/10/2011

Russell Investments, a pioneer in the notion of multi-factor style investing, yesterday announced that its Defensive and Dynamic Indexes, introduced in February 2011, will expand coverage beyond the U.S. stock universe to the 10,000 stocks tracked by Russell Indexes globally.

Statement Of Dissent, Final Rulemaking On Derivatives Clearing Organizations - CFTC Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia

Date 18/10/2011

Introduction

Today, the Commission approved a final rulemaking on the operation of derivatives clearing organizations (each, a “DCO”). Of the Dodd-Frank rulemakings that the Commission has so far undertaken, this rulemaking is among the most important. I have been a strong proponent of clearing. In the aftermath of the Enron crisis, I witnessed first-hand how the creation of ClearPort ameliorated counterparty credit fears in the energy merchant markets and restored liquidity to those markets. I am certain that clearing will similarly benefit the swaps market, particularly by significantly expanding execution on electronic platforms, thereby increasing price transparency and discovery. Moreover, as we have seen in the 2008 financial crisis, clearing has the potential to mitigate systemic risk, by ensuring that swap counterparties – not hardworking American taxpayers – post collateral to support their exposures.

Kunlun Energy Co. Ltd Added To Dow Jones Emerging Markets Oil & Gas Titans Index

Date 18/10/2011

Kunlun Energy Co. Ltd of Hong Kong will be added to the Dow Jones Emerging Markets Oil & Gas Titans 30 Index, Dow Jones Indexes announced today.

“Does The Commission Always Know Best?” - Opening Statement By CFTC Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia: Open Meeting On Position Limits For Futures And Swaps; Derivatives Clearing Organizations; Effective Date For Swap Regulation

Date 18/10/2011

Today, the Commission is voting on final rulemakings on position limits and the operation of derivatives clearing organizations (“DCOs”). Further, the Commission is voting on a proposed order that would extend needed exemptive relief to market participants during the pendency of Commission rulemaking. Before we begin, I would like to join my colleagues in thanking the three teams responsible for the final rulemakings and the proposed order. Their hard work has resulted in comprehensive documents totaling nearly 800 pages. Their perseverance over the one-and-a-half-year rulemaking process has been truly inspiring.

A Coordination Framework For Monitoring The Implementation Of Agreed G20/FSB Financial Reforms

Date 18/10/2011

At the request of the G20, the FSB has monitored progress in the development and implementation of the G20 recommendations for financial sector policy reforms since the Washington Summit in November 2008. The regular reports to G20 Ministers and Governors and to G20 Leaders have to this point focused primarily on the progress of global policy development in major reform areas.

Opening Statement, Public Meeting On Final Rules Under The Dodd-Frank Act - CFTC Commissioner Michael V. Dunn

Date 18/10/2011

Thank you all for joining us today for another meeting to consider final rules promulgated pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act. Today we consider rules in two areas: position limits and derivatives clearing organizations. We also consider a proposed amendment to the effective date for regulation.