The Board of Directors of the NFA has elected Christopher K. Hehmeyer, Non-Executive Chairman at Penson Futures, to serve a one-year term as Chairman. View Press Release in full here (links externally to NFA website).

Chairman Jeb Hensarling announced the Financial Services Committee's March schedule of hearings. The committee will focus on the Federal Reserve's conduct of monetary policy, the need for a sustainable housing finance system, regulatory burdens hindering economic growth, and ending "Too Big to Fail." View details of the meeting here (links externally to Financial Services site).

The SEC announced that it will be holding a Credit Ratings Roundtable on May 14th in response to a recent staff report on credit ratings. The roundtable will be held at the Commission's headquarters in Washington, D.C., and will be open to the public and webcast live on the SEC website. Cross-Reference(s) : Dodd-Frank Title IX ("Investor Protections and Improvements to the Regulation of Securities"). See : SEC Press Release; Staff's Report on Assigned Credit Ratings. Additional News Item : SEC Report to Congress on Assigned Credit Ratings.

The CFTC is amending its Rules of Practice, Rules Relating to Reparation Proceedings, and its Rules Relating to Review of National Futures Association ("NFA") Decisions in Disciplinary, Membership Denial, Registration and Membership Responsibility Actions, largely with respect to various procedural issues. More significantly, the CFTC is also amending its Rules Relating to Reparations Proceedings to expand the authority of its Judgment Officers. Effective Date: February 26, 2013. Cross-Reference(s): CFTC Rules Parts 10 ("Rules of Practice"), 12 ("Rules Relating to Reparations"), and 171 (

CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton called for the systematic review of all major financial benchmarks during a statement he made before the International Roundtable on Financial Benchmarks on February 26, 2013. He expressed the need for a "governmental, quasi-governmental or not-for-profit" oversight of all the major marks used by the industry. He specifically referred to the LIBOR, energy swaps, gold and silver fixes in London, and the "whole litany of bors." He went on to say that "every single [bench]mark needs to be reviewed, and potentially investigated." View Statement in full here (links