CFTC passes revised customer protection rules

摘要

US commodities regulator the CFTC has approved new rules to increase protection for futures brokers’ customers. The move is a response to the bankruptcies of two high-profile brokerages over the last two years that included clients with heavy exposure to energy swaps and futures. But the agency has scaled back some of the more stringent requirements under pressure from the brokering community. New CFTC customer protection rules require futures brokers to hold enough liquid capital to cover margins for customers’ cleared swaps, futures and options positions at the end of the business day following the relevant trading day. The requirement comes into force one year after the rule’s publication, most likely by mid-November.