Gensler: Regulation doesn’t go far enough

Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman Gary Gensler believes proposed regulation by the Obama administration to govern derivative markets could contain loopholes. Gensler tells the Washington Post that the legislation leaves significant elements of the market out of the reach of regulators and undermine efforts to combat fraud.  Of particular concern to Gensler is:  certain types of [...]

Congress considers regulating derivatives

The Washington Post has a story about how Congress is debating legislation whether to regulate derivatives. The legislation includes establishing a single agency to oversee credit and mortgage lending, to give the Federal Reserve new powers, and to tighten regulations over a host of financial firms and practices: The Obama administration formally proposed legislation on Tuesday to regulate exotic [...]

Brodsky calls for merger of CFTC and SEC

Reuters has a story about William Brodsky, CEO of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), saying in a written statement there’s a “compelling need” to merge the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Brodsky was scheduled to testify at a House of Representatives Financial Services Committee hearing on Friday about the [...]

Learsy questions banks over role in oil speculation

Raymond J. Learsy, scholar and author of the Over a Barrel: Breaking Oil’s Grip on Our Future, has written an interesting piece in the Huffington Post that’s worth a read. In his piece, Learsy looks at how investment banks turned bank holding companies like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have used the Tarp fund and other taxpayer [...]

Geithner wants OTC derivatives traded on exchanges

A story from the Oil & Gas Financial Journal about U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner talking about greater reglation for over-the-counter derivatives (OTC). OTC derivatives are a type of contract used on the commodity exhange. They are privately negotiated and traded directly between two parties, without going through an exchange or other intermediary. CLICK HERE to [...]

CFTC hopeful of new regulation by late October

A follow up story by Reuters about the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s process and plans for regulating excessive speculation in the commodity market. For those who have not been following this story, the CFTC’s moves are part of the Obama administration’s plans to tighten U.S. financial regulation and prevent another banking and market crisis.  Critics have  argued the global financial [...]