The OCC, the Federal Reserve Board, and the FDIC recently announced the availability of the 2012 list of distressed or underserved nonmetropolitan middle-income geographies, in which bank revitalization or stabilization activities will receive Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) recognition as “community development.#8221;

CME Group Executive Chairman and President Terry Duffy will appear before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry today to deliver the following testimony: "Examining the Futures Markets: Responding to the Failures of MF Global and Peregrine Financial Group." The testimony contains a variety of recommendations both as to control procedures that should be implemented at individual firms and as to regulatory improvements. [SL Comment: The testimony should be reviewed by those working in financial/operational controls as both FCMs and broker-dealers to asses the potential

The sanctioned individual was involved with, among other things, "selling away" violations. In addition, the individual was charged with trying to conceal what were essentially brokerage-type services under the rubric of their being "consulting" services as to hide the fact that they were services that should have been performed by an SEC-registered broker-dealer. Cross Reference(s) : Exchange Act Sections 15(b) and 21C; Investment Company Act Section 9(c). For a general description of the activities requiring broker-dealer registration, see Lofchie's Guide to Broker-Dealers, Chapter 2. View

The CFTC, in a court filing, reported that the CFTC/SEC release announcing the adoption of the "swap" definition will be published in the Federal Register on Aug. 13. According to the court filing, that publication will trigger the compliance date for the Position Limit Rule. Of course, it will also trigger compliance with a good number of other CFTC Rules. [SL Comment: Persons wishing further information on the effective date of various CFTC Rules should contact their regular CWT attorney. Persons planning vacations around the relevant effective dates may wish to reconsider travel plans.]

Cross Reference(s) : Dodd-Frank Section 619. View video here (via SIFMA, links externally to CNBC website).