Tag Archives: CFTC

News Release: CFTC Provides Carbon Market Guidance to Exchanges, But More Needs to Be Done

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued final guidance that outlines the terms and conditions that should be considered by designated contract markets (“DCMs”) when they list voluntary carbon credit (“VCC”) derivative contracts. The CFTC has rightly acknowledged the serious transparency and integrity challenges in the underlying, unregulated VCC market, but the guidance alone cannot prevent fraud and manipulation.

Cryptocurrency

Blog: The Digital Commodities Act: The Real Deal, or a Castle on a Cloud?

The Senate Agriculture Committee is developing legislation aimed at closing the regulatory oversight gap that the cryptocurrency lobby insists is a problem. True, the crypto industry is highly volatile and riddled with scams that expose those that buy cryptocurrencies and tokens to substantial financial losses. But that’s a problem of enforcing existing rules, not regulation. The proposed bill purports to provide regulatory guardrails to this crypto Wild West, but ultimately would give a federal imprimatur to the crypto industry while only offering the patina of the necessary investor and market safeguards needed to protect vulnerable investors.

a green forest with a tornado looming

Letters to Regulators: CFTC Should Finalize Guidance and Continue Close Monitoring of Risks of Voluntary Carbon Credit Derivatives Contracts

Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund (AFREF) submitted a comment letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) on its proposed guidance for designated contract markets (“DCMs”) on commodity characteristics that should be considered in terms and conditions for the listing of voluntary carbon credit

Letters to the Regulators: Letter in Opposition to the CFTC’s Proposed Rulemaking and its Dangerous Precedent

Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund and Consumer Federation of America, Food & Water Watch, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, and Public Citizen sent a letter sharing their grave concerns with the justification and potentially calamitous precedent contained in the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC’s) proposed rulemaking for the Investment of Customer Funds by Futures Commission Merchants and Derivatives Clearing Organizations. This proposal would expand the list of permitted investments for customer funds to include foreign debt which could put customers at undue financial risk — avoiding such risk was the rationale for prohibiting these transactions in 2011 after the MF Global meltdown.

Remarks: Written Remarks Regarding Digital Assets Policy Frameworks – Areas for MRAC Review

AFREF and Demand Progress Education Fund attended a meeting of the Market Risk Advisory Committee for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. There, AFREF/DPEF staff gave remarks on digital assets, including recommendations to the Committee regarding research and analysis into proper regulatory oversight of the digital assets sector. Recommendations included research into cybersecurity risks associated with crypto platforms and crypto derivatives, as well as a review of due diligence processes conducted by the CFTC and other regulators when CFTC registered entities involved in digital assets are acquired by another firm.

CFTC Offsets Media Advisory: Senators, Climate Justice Groups, and Financial Regulation Watchdogs Urge CFTC to Rein In Voluntary Carbon Market Derivatives

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA ADVISORY October 5th, 2022 CONTACT: Ada Recinos ada@amazonwatch.org (510) 473-7542 Senators, Climate Justice Groups, and Financial Regulation Watchdogs Urge CFTC to Rein In Voluntary Carbon Market Derivatives What: On Friday, October 7th, a coalition of climate justice and financial regulation advocacy