Co-written by David Mitchell
Summary
The staff of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the "CFTC") has issued a report which presents a package of recommended changes to the existing regulatory framework for the futures markets under the Commodity Exchange Act, as amended (the "CEA"), 7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq. See Report of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Staff Task Force, A New Regulatory Framework (February 2000) (hereinafter, the "Staff Report"). While the Staff Report has not been formally adopted or approved by the CFTC itself, the Commissioners (including Chairman Rainer) have had input into it.
The proposed framework recognizes three new categories of markets which would be subject to varying degrees of CFTC oversight, based upon the nature of the instruments traded and the sophistication of the participants. This multi-tiered framework would replace the current "one size fits all" approach to regulation of the futures markets in the United States. It would
