December 9, 2011, Chicago and New York – National Futures Association (NFA) and BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), (“BGC Partners,” “BGC,” or “the Company”), a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial markets, today announced that they have entered into an agreement that paves the way for NFA to perform regulatory services for BGC’s planned swap execution facility (SEF). The Agreement establishes a preliminary framework for the exchange of information and the development of technology standards that will enable BGC and NFA to develop, test and launch automated trade practice and surveillance systems and also to develop procedures and processes necessary for BGC to fulfill its SEF self-regulatory obligations. Upon the issuance of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) final SEF rules, NFA and BGC anticipate that they will enter into a formal Regulatory Services Agreement.
Under the Dodd-Frank Act and the rules and regulations currently being written by the CFTC, SEFs will have surveillance and other regulatory responsibilities. The CFTC has proposed to allow SEFs to contract with a registered futures association, such as NFA, or another registered entity for regulatory services.
“This is a significant step forward as we engage in new regulatory activity on behalf of SEFs. For over ten years, NFA has been successfully performing trade practice and market surveillance functions on behalf of futures exchanges,” said NFA President Daniel J. Roth. “We look forward to working with BGC as we enhance our surveillance systems to assist BGC and other SEFs in meeting their regulatory responsibilities.”
About NFA
NFA is the premier independent provider of innovative and efficient regulatory programs that safeguard the integrity of the derivatives markets. Learn more about NFA at www.nfa.futures.org.
About BGC Partners, Inc.
BGC Partners, Inc. is a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial markets, including fixed income securities, interest rate swaps, foreign exchange, equities, equity derivatives, credit derivatives, commercial real estate, property derivatives, commodities, futures, and structured products. BGC’s technology helps customers, including many of the world’s largest banks, broker-dealers, investment banks, trading firms, hedge funds, governments and investment firms, determine the value of a transaction through optimal pricing that reflects the market environment. Trades, conducted OTC or on exchange, are executed through BGC’s voice, hybrid, or fully electronic brokerage services. BGC also offers financial technology solutions, market data, and analytics regarding financial instruments and markets through its eSpeed, BGC Trader, and BGC Market Data brands, and provides clearing, processing, and other back-office services. Named after fixed income trading innovator B. Gerald Cantor, BGC has offices in New York, London and more than two dozen other major financial centers around the world. For more information, please visit www.bgcpartners.com.
Discussion of Forward-Looking Statements by BGC Partners
Statements in this press release regarding BGC Partners’ business that are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of additional risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see BGC Partners’ Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, including, but not limited to, the risk factors set forth in our public filings which we incorporate by reference, including our most recent 10-K and any updates to such risk factors contained in subsequent 10-Q or 8-K filings.