CFTC Staff Letters

The Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight took a CPO and CTA registration no-action position with respect to the use of wholly-owned United States subsidiaries by a Canadian company to participate in commodity pools organized and operated in the United States. The Canadian company is the real estate investment subsidiary of an entity formed by a Canadian province to invest assets of pension and insurance plans. The United States subsidiaries are formed for tax purposes, and neither the Canadian company nor any of its United States subsidiaries seeks or accepts United States investors or participants.

No-Action Relief is provided to swap dealers from compliance with certain Commission regulations related to business conduct standards with counterparties and swap trading relationship documentation when entering into swaps with certain special purpose vehicles in existence prior to October 10, 2013.

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3) to allow the CPO to file a 14-month annual report for the pool for the period from November 3, 2014, the date the CPO began operations, through December 31, 2015. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from November 3, 2014 to December 31, 2015.

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3) to allow the CPO to file a 14-month annual report for the pool for the period from January 1, 2015, the date the pool began trading, through February 29, 2016, the close of the pool’s 2015-16 fiscal year. The CPO submitted a signed waiver from the pool’s participant, indicating consent to receive such a report. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from January 1, 2015 to February 29, 2016.

The CPO of a commodity pool requested exemptive relief from Regulation 4.22(d)(1), which requires the financial statements included in Annual Reports to be audited. The CPO submitted waivers from all pool participants, consenting to receive an unaudited Annual Report. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 from Regulation 4.22(d), permitting the filing and distribution of an unaudited 2014 annual report. Such relief is also conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report in full compliance with Regulations 4.22(c) and (d) that covers the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years.

The CPO of a commodity pool that began trading in June 2014 requested exemptive relief from Regulations 4.22(c) and (d). The CPO submitted waivers from all pool participants, which included two proprietary and three outside investors. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 from Regulation 4.22(d), permitting the filing and distribution of an unaudited 2014 annual report. Such relief is also conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report in full compliance with Regulations 4.22(c) and (d) that covers the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years.

The CPO of a commodity pool operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7 requested exemptive relief from the requirement in Regulation 4.22(d)(1) that the financial statements in the pool’s annual report be audited. The pool began operations in January 2014, and at the end of the 2014 fiscal year, had two proprietary participants. DSIO granted relief from the audit requirement for the 2014 annual report pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93, conditioned upon the filing of an uncertified annual report for the 2014 fiscal year that otherwise complies with the provisions of Regulation 4.7(b)(3).

The no-action letter gives relief from the timing requirements of 3.3(f)(2) for filing the Chief Compliance Officer Annual Report. The relief gives an additional 30 days to file the report.

Staff advisory from the Divisions of Market Oversight and Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight to remind futures commission merchants, clearing members, foreign brokers, swap dealers, and certain reporting markets of their obligation to obtain information on a timely basis from their customers or counterparties in order to comply with the ownership and control reports (OCR) final rule.

The CPO of two commodity pools, both operated pursuant to an exemption under Regulation 4.7, requested exemptive relief from the annual report requirement in Regulation 4.7(b)(3), to allow the CPO to file an annual report for the pools for the period from November 3, 2014, the date the pools began trading, to December 31, 2015. The CPO stated that one pool feeds into the other, and though solicitation is ongoing, the only participant in the feeder pool currently is the CPO’s CEO. DSIO granted relief pursuant to Regulations 4.12(a) and 140.93 conditioned upon the future filing and distribution of a certified Annual Report for the period from November 3, 2014 to December 31, 2015.