Commodity Futures Trading Commission July 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On July 12, 2012, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``Commission'' or ``CFTC'') published for public comment its proposed interpretive guidance and policy statement (``Proposed Guidance'') regarding the cross-border application of the swaps provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (``CEA''), as added by Title VII of the Dodd- Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank Act'' or ``Dodd-Frank''). On December 21, 2012, the Commission also proposed further guidance on certain aspects of the Proposed Guidance (``Further Proposed Guidance''). The Commission has determined to finalize the Proposed Guidance with certain modifications and clarifications to address public comments. The Commission's Interpretive Guidance and Policy Statement (``Guidance'') addresses the scope of the term ``U.S. person,'' the general framework for swap dealer and major swap participant registration determinations (including the aggregation requirement applicable to the de minimis calculation with respect to swap dealers), the treatment of swaps involving certain foreign branches of U.S. banks, the treatment of swaps involving a non-U.S. counterparty guaranteed by a U.S. person or ``affiliate conduit,'' and the categorization of the Dodd-Frank swaps provisions as ``Entity-Level Requirements'' or ``Transaction-Level Requirements.''

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is correcting a final rule that appeared in the Federal Register of May 31, 2013 (78 FR 32866). The final rule adopted regulations, under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, defining the criteria for grouping swaps into separate swap categories and establishing methodologies for setting appropriate minimum block sizes for each swap category. These corrections fix errors in certain contract descriptions, block sizes, and block units listed in Appendix F to the final rule.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) Agricultural Advisory Committee (AAC) is providing notice that it will hold a public meeting on Thursday, July 25, 2013, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at the CFTC's Washington, DC, headquarters. The AAC will discuss issues related to customer protection and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The meeting is open to the public with seating on a first-come, first-served basis. Members of the public who wish to listen to the meeting by telephone may do so by calling a domestic toll-free or international toll or toll-free number. The domestic toll-free number, which is listed in this Notice, will connect to a live, listen-only audio feed. The international toll and toll-free numbers will be posted on the CFTC Web site in advance of the meeting. Call-in participants should be prepared to provide their first name, last name, and affiliation. Persons requiring special accommodations to attend the meeting because of a disability should notify the contact person below. The public is invited to submit written statements to the AAC. The meeting will be recorded and later posted on the CFTC Web site, www.cftc.gov.