CFTC Extends COVID-19-Related No-Action Relief

The CFTC's Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight ("DSIO") and Division of Market Oversight ("DMO") extended relief previously provided to CFTC registrants due to compliance challenges caused by COVID-19. The relief, formerly set to expire on June 30, 2020, is now extended until September 30, 2020.

As previously covered, the DSIO on March 17, 2020 issued a series of no-action letters: Letter 20-03 to futures commission merchants ("FCMs") and introducing brokers ("IBs"); Letter 20-06 to swap dealers ("SDs"); and Letter 20-05 to retail foreign exchange dealers, granting relief from:

  1. recording oral communications, provided that certain requirements are met, including the creation and maintenance of a written record of the oral communication (including date, time, identifying information of the persons participating, and subject matter of the communication); and
  2. complying with time-stamping requirements as to personnel located in a "socially-distanced" location, in addition to relief from other CFTC regulations.

The DSIO did not extend the relief provided in Letters 20-03 and 20-06 for FCMs/IBs and SDs regarding submission of annual compliance reports.

Additionally, the no-action letters issued by the DSIO provided an exemption for (i) floor brokers (see Letter 20-04) from having to be physically located on the premises of a designated contract market and (ii) designated contract markets ("DCMs") and swap execution facilities (see Letter 20-02) from time-stamping requirements when in a socially-distanced location.

For DCMs, Letter 20-09 provided relief from audit trail and related requirements concerning the displacement of market participants from the DCM premises.

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