NIBA - Celebrating 35 Years

NIBA Journal

Insights, analysis, and updates from the National Introducing Brokers Association

Five Ways to Appeal to Investors
Marketing
3 min read

Five Ways to Appeal to Investors

You have worked hard putting your fund or managed futures program together. All of your strategy building, back-testing and hard work looking for an edge in today’s futures markets has culminated in a program that you believe has the potential to deliver value to your investors. In today’s highly competitive environment, however, simply having a good program is not enough. To cross the initial AUM threshold, and then continue on to the $25 million threshold and the $50 million threshold, you have to give investors a reason to put their hard-earned capital to work in your program. Here are five simple things you can do right now to appeal to investors: Get in front of them: People are not simply going to start showing up at your company’s doorstep offering to make allocations to your program. You have to be proactive about getting your program in front of the right...

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Chairman's Letter - February 2017
Member Announcements
2 min read

Chairman's Letter - February 2017

A little learning, indeed, may be a dangerous thing, but the lack of learning is a calamity to any people - Frederick Douglass, 1817-1895 Frederick Douglass was an abolitionist, orator, author, and women’s rights advocate. A former slave, he rose to national prominence during the Civil War years, and was an outspoken supporter of the necessity of education to further the betterment of the human condition right up to the end of his life. NIBA’s mission is education. Learning about our industry, market conditions and regulations is not only necessary for CFTC registrants and NFA Members so that they stay compliant, but helps us to service the needs of our customers in the very best ways possible. NIBA’s first membership learning opportunity of 2017 takes place on Feb. 23 at the Marriott Hotel, Newport Beach, CA. With the program sponsorship of CME Group, Gain Capital and Phillip Capital, NIBA will...

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Annual FCM & Service Provider Reception
Member Announcements
1 min read

Annual FCM & Service Provider Reception

NIBA held its annual "Thank You" reception for FCMs and Service Providers at the Union League Club in Chicago on February 2. Thirty-four FCM and Service Provider Members attended and were honored for their contributions and support of the Association. The following were honored for exceptional service to NIBA membership: - Liccar & Co., Founding Member - CME Group, Founding Member - Gate 39 Media - Michael Coglianese, CPA Each February NIBA hosts an afternoon get-together to preview the upcoming year's membership events and discuss ways FCMs and Service Providers can participate throughout the year. Thank you to this year's planning committee: John Nelson, Applied Research; Holli Kranz, Gate39 Media; Steve Petillo, Mike Burke & Melinda Schramm for the NIBA. To become a NIBA FCM Member contact Mike Burke, mikeb@highgroundtrading.com or Steve Petillo, stevepetillo@gmail.com. To become a Service Provider Member contact Ralph Preston,rpreston@hwfi.com or Mike Burke.

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CFTC Names J. Christopher Giancarlo Acting Chairman
1 min read

CFTC Names J. Christopher Giancarlo Acting Chairman

Washington, DC — Commissioner J. Christopher Giancarlo was designated per seriatim as Acting Chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on January 20, 2017. Mr. Giancarlo joined the CFTC on June 16, 2014 after being unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on June 3, 2014, to serve as a Commissioner of the CFTC, the federal agency that oversees the commodity futures, options and swaps industry. Commissioner Giancarlo succeeded Timothy Massad who has served as Chairman since June 5, 2014. Last Updated: January 20, 2017

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Top 10 Issues for CFTC/NFA Compliance in 2017
8 min read

Top 10 Issues for CFTC/NFA Compliance in 2017

Happy New Year! We hope the NIBA membership had a successful 2016. The beginning of a new year is typically a time when firms are focused on plans for growing their book of business. While the launch of new marketing or trading campaigns is certainly important, attention to operational and regulatory issues is just as critical for a successful firm. Compliance matters, in particular, are often overlooked when evaluating firm activities and planning for improvements going into a new year. The start of 2017 is the perfect time for registered firms to take an inventory of their regulatory obligations and implement a strategy that ensures requirements are met on an ongoing basis. To help NIBA kick off the New Year right, this article will discuss ten of the top things to consider for your 2017 compliance program. These ten things are what Turnkey Trading Partners staff most commonly encounters with...

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Ask NFA - January 2017
3 min read

Ask NFA - January 2017

As your industry advocate, the NIBA provides many services which help your business stay in compliance with NFA regulations. “Ask the NFA,” is the way you can ask questions about those regulations and compliance requirements without having to call NFA directly. Just email us at nfacomments@theniba.com and we will get the answers for you. Please keep in mind the purpose of this contact is to keep the lines of communication between the NFA and NIBA members. This month’s questions were selected from those submitted by NIBA members. The answers were supplied by NFA staff. Is a 3rd Party audit of my firm's cybersecurity policies and procedures required by the new reg? NFA's Cybersecurity Interpretive Notice states that Members should monitor and regularly review the effectiveness of their written Information Systems Security Program (ISSP), including the efficacy of the safeguards deployed, and make adjustments as appropriate. A Member should perform a...

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Housekeeping, Reminders & Updates - January 2017
Housekeeping
4 min read

Housekeeping, Reminders & Updates - January 2017

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network Advisory on FATF List of Jurisdiction with AML/CFT Deficiencies On January 19, 2017, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued an advisory announcing that the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) updated its lists of identified jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in their frameworks to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation. The purposes of FATF’s lists are to track and monitor compliance with the international Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (“AML/CFT”) standards. The changes to FATF’s lists may affect US financial institutions’ obligation and risk-based approaches with respect to relevant jurisdictions. Updates to the FATF lists are outlined in FinCEN Advisory FIN-2017-A001. New Due Date for FBARs FinCEN has changed the due date for filing Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”) to coincide with the federal income tax due dates. The new annual due date for filing an FBAR...

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Top 5 Ways AI in Compliance Will Affect You in 2017
3 min read

Top 5 Ways AI in Compliance Will Affect You in 2017

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the hottest topic in service industries these days, and compliance is no exception. AI can be roughly divided into two categories: General, which we see in movies and read about in science fiction novels, and Specific, which is what will have the greatest impact in 2017. The new year is upon us, bringing promises of a variety of breakout technologies to help companies more easily comply with their regulatory requirements. Much in the way that manufacturing was forever altered by machine automation, service industries will be increasingly disrupted, resulting in significant cost savings and efficiency gains for all business owners. Intelligence Targeted for You If smart data is akin to information, then smart information is equal to intelligence. Intelligent compliance programs will be targeted to your activities: you will receive specific information about regulatory changes, laws, and actions that are applicable acutely to your firm. You’ll...

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Financial Marketing is a Process: Defining and Executing an End-to-End Marketing Process
Marketing
5 min read

Financial Marketing is a Process: Defining and Executing an End-to-End Marketing Process

By Shane Stiles and Sarah McNabb Whether you’re a fund manager, investment advisor or broker, whether you’re selling retail or institutional trading, or raising assets for a fund—marketing starts with a process. The goal of a well-defined marketing process is to generate leads that can then be converted to clients through the efforts of automated marketing and sales tactics. Marketing Infrastructure Before you begin to define your offers and campaigns, your marketing infrastructure --the engine for your marketing fuel-- must be defined. The leads generated by your offers are best managed within a customer relationship management (CRM) software. A good CRM allows businesses to not only store client info and track a sales process, but to gain insight into customer and lead behaviors so they can be marketed to according to their actions. Better CRM systems integrate data from your website, providing measurable stats, segmenting interested contacts who have completed...

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