NIBA Journal

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

March 27, 2013

FCM Responsibilities for Introducing Brokers' Communications with the Public

FCM Responsibilities for the Review and Approval of their Guaranteed Introducing Brokers' Communications with the Public Recently, NFA has experienced a sharp increase in the number of promotional material submissions to NFA's Pre-review Program by Guaranteed Introducing Brokers ("GIBs") that have not first submitted the material to their Guarantor FCM for review and approval. In some cases, the Guarantor FCM has specifically directed its GIB to forward the material to NFA prior to its own review. In other cases, the GIB has submitted the material to NFA without the Guarantor FCM's knowledge. Since Guarantor FCMs are required to supervise the activities of their GIBs, including approving all GIB promotional material, the Guarantor FCM should review this material before the material is sent to NFA's Pre-Review Program. The purpose of this notice is to remind Member FCMs of their supervisory responsibilities with respect to GIB promotional material and communications with the...

Ask the Experts: The 2013 USDA Prospective Plantings Report

The March 28, 2013, USDA Prospective Plantings report will have a major impact on agricultural markets, providing the first survey-based indication of the expected plantings for the 2013 season. In anticipation of this report, please join us as experts from CME Group and Thomson Reuters discuss acreage expectations and the current market outlook. When: Wednesday, March 27 2:30 p.m. CT Where: CME Group Auditorium 20 South Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60604 -or- Attend it online! Webinar topics will include: Lanworth outlook on US 2013/2014 corn and soybean acreage 2012/2013 South American review International trade overview: exports, stocks, and demand 2013 crop weather outlook and residual effects of the drought Global long term production trends Opportunities with Weekly and Short-Dated New Crop options Speakers: Dr. Corey Cherr Product Manager, Agriculture Research Thomson Reuters Commodities Research and Forecasts Gavin Maguire Agriculture Markets Columnist Thomson Reuters Tim Andriesen Managing Director, Agricultural Products CME...

J.P. Morgan, Trustee for MF Global Reach Pact

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. has reached a settlement that will return an estimated $546 million to MF Global Holdings Ltd. customers, likely bringing an end to a major chapter in customers' effort to recover money from the securities firm's 2011 collapse. J.P. Morgan, the trustee for the failed company's brokerage unit, and lawyers representing customer plaintiffs in the case filed their settlement agreement after finalizing terms in recent days, according to a person familiar with the process. Under terms of the settlement, filed in court Tuesday, J.P. Morgan is set to pay $100 million to reimburse customers, while also releasing claims it had on $417 million in MF Global funds that it had previously returned to the trustee representing customers, James W. Giddens. J.P. Morgan also is returning $29 million related to agreements including an MF Global credit facility. J.P. Morgan is expected to incur an expense of about...

April NIBA Meeting in NYC Canceled

Please Note: The April 24, 2013 meeting in New York City has been canceled. Alternate dates and times for NIBA meetings will be posted shortly. Please also check the NIBA Newsletter frequently for meetings, conferences and other updates.

CFTC Consumer Outreach for March 2013

Source: CFTC Consumer Outreach/March 2013 In this month’s Consumer Outreach Update the CFTC highlights a new section of the web site that provides information and resources on the most frequently confronted frauds under CFTC jurisdiction. Read the CFTC Consumer Outreach Update for March 2013. The Opinions expressed are the opinions of the author. The opinions, the trading styles, trading information and trading programs are not endorsed by the NIBA, but are the individual opinions, styles, information and programs of the author.

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Chief Compliance Officer Requirements Become Effective for All FCMs

March 11, 2013

3 min read

Chief Compliance Officer Requirements Become Effective for All FCMs

Chief Compliance Officer Requirements Become Effective for All FCMs on March 29, 2013 As we notified Members in Notice I-12-21, the Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) requirements under CFTC Regulation 3.3 became effective on October 1, 2012 for FCMs that are regulated by a prudential regulator or that are also in some capacity registrants of the SEC. The compliance date for all other FCMs is March 29, 2013. Therefore, all FCMs not subject to the October 1, 2012 compliance date must designate a CCO and that person must be listed as a principal of the FCM by March 29, 2013. Those FCMs subject to the March 29, 2013 effective date will be required to file the CCO Annual Report as of the date of the firm's first fiscal year end after March 29, 2013. This Notice contains important information about listing with NFA the firm's CCO as a principal and the...

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Improving Predictability of Future Results

Focus on the Membership

March 8, 2013

4 min read

Improving Predictability of Future Results

The general industry disclaimer is "Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results". However, what if we could identify and select CTAs with the characteristics necessary to produce "more" predictable future performance? Rather than simply chasing the hot hand, investors and allocators could improve their chances for long term success by focusing on selecting CTAs with a strong probability of repeating past performance in the future. More than 20 years ago, when Brandywine developed our Benchmark trading program, we faced the same question. How could we increase the odds that our future performance would match the past tested performance of our trading program? The answer to this question led to the development of our portfolio allocation model (elements of which are referred to today as “Risk Parity” investing). What we found was that the main characteristic necessary to improve predictability of future results is true portfolio diversification. Our research...

CFTC Filing

On Friday February 15th, the NIBA filed the following comment letter with the CFTC. It discusses a Commission proposal which, if approved, would likely affect customer margin requirements. Hedging customers would feel the result, and an IB's ability to transfer positions between brokerage houses would be severely hindered. Read the full comment letter to the CFTC filed by the NIBA John Lothian News has put together a special report on this critical issue, to view this video click here. The Opinions expressed are the opinions of the author. The opinions, the trading styles, trading information and trading programs are not endorsed by the NIBA, but are the individual opinions, styles, information and programs of the author.

Futures Magazine Acquired by The Alpha Pages

CHICAGO—The Alpha Pages, LLC recently acquired Futures Magazine and its digital properties, including Futuresmag.com, ResourceInvestor.com and all related e-newsletters from Summit Business Media. The Alpha Pages is a new media firm focused on alternative investments. The firm was founded and is led by Kristin Fox and Jeff Joseph, two seasoned alternative investment industry veterans. Fox has spent more than 20 years creating print and digital platforms in the alternative investment space, including HedgeWorld.com, which was sold to Reuters in 2005. Joseph was the former managing director of Alternative Investment Strategies at Rydex Investments where he developed and introduced a number of groundbreaking alternative investment products including the first managed futures mutual fund. Fox and Joseph were attracted to the Futures Magazine print and digital properties because of the quality of the content offering, the loyalty of its subscribers, the engagement metrics of the digital users and the solid 41-year-old brand....

Letter to the NIBA Membership

Dear NIBA Members - 2013 is going to be busy! Last month’s tri-sponsored get-together in Southern California was a terrific success. Fifty-five industry professionals - many at their first-ever NIBA event, gathered in Newport Beach, CA, on January 24. Along with our partners, the CME Group and the NFA, the NIBA plans to make this meeting an annual event. We are in the midst of our membership campaign, and have already welcomed 18 Vendor Sponsors to the Association this year. We have great FCM and exchange support too, and will have an updated listing next month. NIBA is proud to announce that members now have access to Great Lakes Credit Union, and to health insurance and human resources administration through Viaquest. These two member benefits can make a real difference in your office’s bottom line. The NFA has announced three new members to its Board of Directors - all NIBA...

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