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Cupcake diplomacy? CFTC chief touts ties with SEC

Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler says he’s so close to his counterpart at the Securities and Exchange Commmision that SEC Chief Mary Schapiro gave him a treat a couple weeks back.

“Mary and I talk often,” he told a crowd at the Futures Industry Association’s annual meeting in Chicago. “It was my birthday a few weeks ago. She made me cupcakes. They were good cupcakes too, and they were homemade!”

Schapiro and Gensler have taken great pains to publicly show they are working together instead of feuding over turf, as their agencies historically often did. Get the full story »

SEC votes to ban ‘naked access’

Federal regulators have mandated new requirements for brokerage firms aimed at reining in risk from their trading customers who get split-second access to markets to buy or sell stocks.

U.S., EU regulators talk reform, tour exchange

Top regulators from the United States and the European Union discussed reforms for futures and over-the-counter derivatives as they toured the world’s largest exchange on Tuesday and lunched with a group of Chicago futures traders and exchange executives. Get the full story »

USDA to again OK genetically altered sugar beets

The U.S. Department of Agriculture unveiled Tuesday controversial plans to again approve genetically modified sugar beets in time for planting next year, a move that would nullify a federal court ruling in August that invalidated the approval the USDA issued five years ago.

The USDA’s proposal, published Tuesday, represents the preliminary stage of the process and will be followed by a 30-day comment period before  a final decision. The USDA laid out three  options in the proposal, including an option not to re-approve the sugar beets, but said its preferred  action would be to “authorize the commercial production” of genetically modified sugar beets under strict regulations.
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Justices weigh 1st Amendment against video games

The Supreme Court on Tuesday expressed sympathy for a California law that aims to keep children from buying ultraviolent video games in which players maim, kill or sexually assault images of people.

But several justices said the law faces a high constitutional hurdle before going into effect. Get the full story »

Ex-federal prosecutor to head CFTC enforcement

A former Manhattan-based federal prosecutor was appointed Monday as the new director of enforcement for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

David Meister, who is an attorney at Skadden Arps, will replace Acting Enforcement Director Vincent McGonagle. Before  joining Skadden, Meisteer was an assistant U.S. attorney in New York’s Southern District, where he was on the office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Get the full story »

CFTC’s Chilton calls for limits on financial futures

A regulator at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Monday called for trading curbs on financial futures such as the Standard & Poor’s 500 E-mini, saying they could help prevent a repeat of the flash crash.

In a speech at the University of  Notre Dame, CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton said the agency has the authority to impose limits on how many financial futures contracts any one market player can hold, though he didn’t offer any details on what kind of limits might be appropriate. Get the full story »

Nasdaq CEO: New market obligations unlikely in ‘11

The head of Nasdaq OMX Group Inc said on Friday he does not expect any new obligations or privileges for U.S. “market-makers” until 2012 at the earliest, calling any regulatory change “a slippery slope.” Get the full story »

SEC sets vote on ‘naked access’ trading ban

The Securities and Exchange Commission will vote Nov. 3 on whether to adopt a proposed ban on “naked access,” a trading arrangement that allows some firms to trade anonymously.

Naked access, offered to customers by some major banks and brokerage firms, allows traders to buy and sell stocks on exchanges using a broker’s computer code, which can shield their identity from regulators and exchanges. Get the full story »

Online travel coalition fights Google’s ITA deal

Several leading Internet travel agencies and search engines are urging U.S. government regulators to block Google from buying a technology supplier that plays an instrumental role in finding the best airline fares. The opponents, led by Expedia Inc., have formed a coalition called FairSearch.org to fight Google Inc.’s proposed $700 million acquisition of ITA Software.

Swaps clearing process clears first CFTC hurdle

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Tuesday approved a proposal to establish a process for deciding which swaps or class of swaps should be submitted to clearinghouses.

The proposal, approved  5-0, will be published for comment. A second vote is needed to implement it. Get the full story »

Credit-card disclosurers clearer, still too complex

Credit card regulations are making it a little easier to understand what interest and penalty rates banks charge. But a study released Monday says card offers are still far more complicated than a decade ago, which makes it harder for consumers to comparison shop. Get the full story »

Office Depot, exes settle SEC charges for $1 million

Office Depot Inc., its chief executive and a former executive agreed to collectively pay more than $1 million to settle regulator’s charges of improper disclosures, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday.

The SEC had accused the company, its CEO Stephen Odland and former chief financial officer Patricia McKay of conveying to analysts and big investors that the company would not meet analysts’ earning estimates for the second quarter of 2007. Get the full story »

FCC weighs creating fund to boost broadband

A new fund could help bring high speed Internet to unserved and remote areas of the United States, U.S. telecommunications regulators said on Thursday.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed allocating universal service funds — fees consumers pay telephone companies to subsidize landline phone services for low-income and rural families — to create a “mobility fund” to expand broadband Internet to areas without service. Get the full story »

SEC votes on plan to police swaps, derivatives

The top U.S. securities regulator Wednesday took its first stab at policing the $615 trillion over-the-counter derivatives market with a plan to mitigate conflicts of interests at venues that will handle the swaps.

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted 5-0 to propose ownership limits on the swaps trading venues and clearinghouses, which will assume the risk if one party defaults. Get the full story »