Release: 5178-06

For Release: May 1, 2006

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to Participate in Annual Money Smart Week In Chicago

Washington, D.C.— The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) will participate with more than 150 local organizations in Chicago’s fifth annual Money Smart Week, a week-long event scheduled during the week of May 1 through 6 and featuring more than 250 free seminars on personal finance topics.

The CFTC’s staff will join the staffs of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Office of Thrift Supervision, and the Illinois Office of the Secretary of State Securities Department’s Midwest Regional Office on Tuesday, May 2, 2006, from 10 am to 2 pm, in the Atrium of the State of Illinois Building, 100 W. Randolph St., Chicago, Illinois 60601. At that time, the agencies will offer the public information and materials about safe investing and will answer questions on investing and consumer fraud.

CFTC Commissioner Michael Dunn, who heads the CFTC’s Forex Task Force, commented:

We are pleased to be joining with other financial regulators at Money Smart Week to ensure the investing public has the information necessary to protect themselves and their wallets. The best weapon in the fight against commodities fraud and other abusive financial practices is an educated customer.

The mission of the CFTC’s Forex Task Force is to educate the public about the dangers of foreign currency (forex) fraud.

Money Smart Week, now in its fifth year, was created by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and members of the Money Smart Advisory Council. It is designed to educate consumers about money management and to create awareness of financial education programs on topics such as budgeting, saving, and using credit wisely.

A complete calendar of events for this year’s Money Smart Week is available on the Chicago Fed’s Web site at http://www.chicagofed.org/money. For additional information, please contact the Illinois Secretary of State Securities Department at (312) 793-3384. Media inquiries should be directed to Debbie Baratz, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, at (312) 322-2387.

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The CFTC encourages members of the public to bring to our attention any suspicious activities involving futures or commodity options, including matters involving foreign currency (forex) investments or suspicious Internet websites.

You may contact the CFTC at 1-866-FON-CFTC (1-866-366-2382), visit us at our Customer Protection web page: (/ConsumerProtection/index.htm), or fill out our Internet Report Form identifying your concerns.

In addition, the CFTC publishes a series of Consumer Advisories at /cftc/cftccustomer.htm#advisory alerting the public to warning signs of possible fraudulent activity and offering precautions individuals should take before committing funds.

Media Contacts
Alan Sobba
202-418-5080

Dennis Holden
202-418-5088

Last Updated: December 26, 2017