News Centre

MIAX: Approved Rule Change To Amend The FINRA Code Of Arbitration Procedure For Customer Disputes And The FINRA Code Of Arbitration Procedure For Industry Disputes To Apply Minimum Fees To Requests For Expungement Of Customer Dispute Information

Date 04/06/2020

Please refer to the following for details regarding the approved rule change to the FINRA Code of Arbitration Procedures for Customer Disputes and Industry Disputes regarding fees for requests for expungement of customer dispute information.

Quarterly Adjustment Of GPW Benchmark Indices

Date 04/06/2020

GPW Benchmark announces the quarterly adjustment of WIG20, mWIG40, sWIG80 and WIG30 indices portfolios. Changes will come into force after close of business on June 19, 2020.

Opening Statement Of CFTC Commissioner Dan M. Berkovitz Before The Meeting Of The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Date 04/06/2020

Liberty and Justice for All

Mr. Chairman, shortly after becoming Chairman of the CFTC you started a new practice where we begin our public meetings by saying the Pledge of Allegiance:

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

We recite the pledge and then move on to consider the pending Commission business.

Today, though, we should pause before we move to consider the pending business.  Cries of anguish, anger, and protest ring out from cities across our country, because for too many Americans—particularly Black Americans—there has been too little liberty and too little justice for far too long.  As a nation, we have not fully lived up to the words in the pledge.  Today, we should consider this too.

EBA Starts Delivering On The Implementation Of The New Regulatory Framework For Investments Firms

Date 04/06/2020

• The EBA is strongly committed to implementing the Investment Firms Regulation and Investment Firms Directive (IFR/IFD) where it plays a significant role;
• The EBA will ensure a proportionate implementation of this new framework to take account of the different classes of investments firms.
• The EBA will deliver on its IFR/IFD mandates following a four-phased approach running from 2020 to 2025.

European Commission Helps Shareholder Engagement By Rejecting The Request Led By Financial Intermediaries To Delay The Implementation Of The New Shareholder Rights

Date 04/06/2020

On 29 April 2020 the heads of European and Member State organisations representing individual shareholders across Europe sent an Open Letter to the European Commission (EC) opposing lobbying attempts led by powerful financial intermediaries to postpone the implementation of the Shareholder Rights Directive II (SRD II). Their call has now been heeded.

Statement Of CFTC Commissioner Dan M. Berkovitz Regarding Prohibiting Exemptions From Commodity Pool Operator Registration For Persons Subject To Certain Statutory Disqualifications

Date 04/06/2020

I support today’s final rule to prohibit commodity pool operators (“CPOs”) or their principals who are subject to statutory disqualification under Section 8a(2) from claiming an exemption from registration.  This rule narrows a loophole in our CPO registration framework and strengthens the Commission’s regulations to protect customers and market integrity.

SEC Awards Record Payout Of Nearly $50 Million To Whistleblower - Whistleblower Program Reaches $500 Million In Total Awards

Date 04/06/2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced a nearly $50 million whistleblower award to an individual who provided detailed, firsthand observations of misconduct by a company, which resulted in a successful enforcement action that returned a significant amount of money to harmed investors.  This is the largest amount ever awarded to one individual under the SEC’s whistleblower program. The next largest is a $39 million award to an individual in 2018.  Two individuals also shared a nearly $50 million whistleblower award that same year.

Statement Of CFTC Commissioner Dawn D. Stump Regarding Final Rule Prohibiting Exemptions Under Rule 4.13 On Behalf Of Persons With Certain Statutory Disqualifications

Date 04/06/2020

One of the great strengths of our derivatives markets – today, just as in the past – is their dynamic nature.  These markets are constantly, and often rapidly, evolving in terms of the scope of products traded, the platforms on which those products are traded, and the participants that trade them.  As a result, “one-size-fits-all” rules often turn out not to be a “good fit” at all.

Nasdaq Stockholm Orders Hitech & Development Wireless Sweden Holding AB To Pay A Fine Corresponding To Eight Annual Fees

Date 04/06/2020

The Disciplinary Committee of Nasdaq Stockholm has found that Hitech & Development Wireless Sweden Holding AB (publ) (“HDW” or the “Company”) has breached the Nasdaq First North Growth Market Rulebook (the “Rulebook”) and has therefore ordered the Company to pay a fine of eight annual fees, corresponding to an amount of SEK 800 000.

Statement Of Commissioner Rostin Behnam Regarding Amendments To Registration And Compliance Requirements For CPOs And CTAs: Prohibiting Exemptions Under Regulation 4.13 On Behalf Of Persons Subject To Certain Statutory Disqualifications

Date 04/06/2020

I support today’s adoption of a final rule (the “Final Rule”) requiring any person that files with the CFTC a notice claiming an exemption from registration as a commodity pool operator (“CPO”) under Regulation 4.13 of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA” or the “Act”) to affirmatively represent that neither the claimant nor any of the CPO’s principals has in its background any statutory disqualifications listed in section 8a(2) of the CEA, which are required to be disclosed as a part of a CPO registration application with the Commission.  Beyond closing a regulatory gap that allows certain persons that would generally fail to meet the CEA’s basic conduct requirements to nevertheless claim an exemption from CPO registration, the Final Rule invigorates the Commission’s stance as an active regulator with respect to the most diverse registration category within our jurisdiction.  As I have said before, CPOs (and commodity trading advisors or “CTAs”) are often identifiable by variable organizational structures, investment focus, participation, and solicitation, as well as complexity in how they are regulated within our authority.[1]  These factors demand that when we act, we do so with a laser focus on customer protections.  I am pleased that this Final Rule aggressively advances customer protection in a tangible way.