Press Releases
Committee Holds Hearing to Review Eurex's Pending Application for Designation as a U.S. Futures Exchange
Washington, DC,
November 6, 2003
The House Committee on Agriculture today held a hearing to review Eurex's pending application for designation as a U.S. futures exchange. A witness list can be found at the bottom of this release. ?Since Eurex US filed this application with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in mid-September, it has generated a great deal of controversy,? Chairman Goodlatte said in opening the hearing. ?The application also has generated legitimate questions about public policy in the area of derivatives regulation -- and this comes just three years after the President signed the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (CFMA), which at the time was widely described as a milestone in sensible deregulation; I hope this hearing is not building the foundation for re-regulating the derivatives markets in this country.? Congress passed the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (PL 106-554) in December 2000. The Act is generally regarded as one of the most significant changes in regulations of the futures industry in the last 25 years. "The hearing today gave us an opportunity to air legitimate concerns and seek answers to questions about the CFTC's due diligence concerning the application and public interest in keeping the process fair and open and our markets orderly," Goodlatte said. "Today's hearing allowed the Committee to explore important issues that require the CFTC to define and refine key aspects of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (CFMA) which was enacted nearly three years ago. That Act was designed to allow exchanges new and old -- to bring innovative ideas to the ma rketplace, while compelling the Commission to define anew its charge to preserve the integrity of ma rkets. Congress needs to pay close attention, however, because the Eurex US application is as much a test of the CFMA as it is of the CFTC," said Ranking Member Charlie Stenholm. "The Eurex US application provides a good opportunity for Members to become more familiar with the new regulatory approval process by reviewing the status of this particular application now pending at the CFTC," Congressman Jerry Moran, Chairman of the General Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee said. "It is my hope that this hearing will help to clarify whether we have in fact achieved the right balance of self-regulation and government oversight, or whether additional steps are needed to ensure market integrity and the competitiveness of the U.S futures industry." The General Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee has held two hearing this year regarding regulatory and enforcement activity since the passage of the CFMA. Panel I Panel II Acc. by: Mr. Bernard W. Dan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago, Illinois Acc. by: Mr. Craig S. Donohue, Incoming Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Chicago , Illinois Acc. by: Mr. Michael Decker, Senior Vice President, Research and Policy Analysis, The Bond Market Association, New York , New York Acc. by: Mr. Ed Rosen, Attorney-at-Law, Cleary Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton , New York , New York ### |