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SEC Proposes New Family Office Definition Under Dodd-Frank Act

October 12, 2010-- The Securities and Exchange Commission today proposed a new rule, based on requirements under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, that would help those managing their own family's financial portfolios determine whether their "family offices" can continue to be excluded from the Investment Advisers Act of 1940.

Family offices are entities established by wealthy families to manage their money and provide tax and estate planning and similar services.

Historically, family offices have not been required to register with the SEC under the Advisers Act because of an exemption provided to investment advisers with fewer than 15 clients. The Dodd-Frank Act removes that exemption to enable the SEC to regulate hedge fund and other private fund advisers, but includes a new provision requiring the SEC to define family offices in order to exempt them from regulation under the Advisers Act.

The Commission is proposing to define a family office as any firm that:

Provides investment advice only to family members, as defined by the rule; certain key employees; charities and trusts established by family members; and entities wholly owned and controlled by family members. Is wholly owned and controlled by family members.

Does not hold itself out to the public as an investment adviser. Public comments on the proposed rule should be received by the Commission by Nov. 18, 2010.

view propsed rule

Source: SEC.gov

Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, MF Global, Morgan Stanley and Newedge Join Green Exchange as Clearing Members

October 11, 2010--Green Exchange ("GreenX") today announced the addition of six new Clearing Member firms who will provide clearing services for the Exchange’s international customer base. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Goldman Sachs & Company, J.P. Morgan Futures Inc., MF Global Inc., Morgan Stanley & Co., Inc. and Newedge USA LLC were approved by CME Clearing and join GreenX's first clearing member, BNP Paribas Commodity Futures Inc., as approved GreenX Clearing Members to date.

Clearing Members assume full financial and performance responsibility for all transactions guaranteed by and executed through them on GreenX.

Commenting on the approval of the additional clearing members, Tom Lewis, Chief Executive of GreenX, said: "The approval of Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, MF Global, Morgan Stanley and Newedge as Clearing Members of the GreenX is a significant milestone for us. These firms offer clearing services to some of the largest traders in environmental commodities and their admittance will allow their customers access to our markets. We are confident that they will bring with them a breadth of experience and expertise in risk management to our marketplace."

These memberships will take effect upon the migration of the environmental products from the NYMEX Designated Contract Market (DCM) to the GreenX DCM on January 24th, 2011. Until then, the GreenX product suite will continue to be listed for trading on NYMEX and cleared through CME Clearing. All CME/CBOT/NYMEX/COMEX Clearing Members are eligible to become GreenX Clearing Members.

Source: SFO

FIA Calls for Joint Industry-CFTC Cooperation to Develop Ownership and Control Reporting System

October 11, 2010-- The futures industry is working on an ownership and control reporting system that will serve as a practical and cost-effective alternative to the OCR system proposed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Futures Industry Association said in comments submitted to the agency on Oct. 7.

“We recognize and support the CFTC’s need to develop a more robust trade practice and market surveillance program,” said FIA President John Damgard. “The FIA OCR Working Group has devoted considerable time to developing an industry solution that we hope will meet the Commission’s goal, but CFTC feedback is critical to the progress of the initiative.”

The FIA working group, comprised of 16 firms and all the U.S. exchanges, is actively involved in designing an industry-wide reporting solution that is expected to be submitted to the CFTC by the end of this month. The industry solution is designed to use data currently available in existing systems. It is also designed to be less costly and less time-consuming to implement, and have less impact on small entities.

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Source: FIA

US stocks higher on hopes of monetary intervention

October 8, 2010--US stocks advanced, with the Dow rising above the key 11,000 mark for the first time since May, after weak jobs data raised investors’ hopes that the Federal Reserve could embark on further quantitative easing.

The S&P 500 closed up 0.6 per cent to 1,165.15 on Friday, higher by 1.8 per cent over the week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 0.5 per cent to close at 11,006.48, up 1.9 per cent over the five days. The Dow has not closed above 11,000 since May 3.

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Source: FT.com

Investors wait for official word on easing

October 8, 2010--Dollar selling intensified this week as economic data from the US continued to support the case for a further round of quantitative easing by the Federal Reserve.

The dollar has found scant support since the US central bank’s monetary policy meeting in September when Ben Bernanke, chairman, said in a statement after the meeting that the Fed would act “appropriately” should economic conditions worsen.

Investors have taken this to mean that another round of quantitative easing is on the way, probably at the Fed’s November meeting, and have been dollar bears ever since.

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Source: FT.com

Invesco PowerShares Announces Changes to ETF Family

October 8, 2010-- Invesco PowerShares Capital Management LLC, a leading global provider of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with more than $50 billion in franchise assets, announced changes to its PowerShares family, one of the broadest in the marketplace today. In a continuing effort to proactively address the growing needs of investors in ETFs and to position its business for future growth opportunities, Invesco PowerShares announced that it plans to close 10 of its ETFs. The affected funds represent less than 1% of Invesco PowerShares’ total assets.

“We regularly review portfolios carefully evaluating numerous factors such as investment results, length of time in the market, investor interest, and the potential for future growth," said Ben Fulton, Invesco PowerShares managing director of global ETFs. “Based on this assessment, we believe that it’s in the best interest of our investors that we refocus our resources on areas that we believe are of greater client interest. As a pioneer and one of the leading innovators in the ETF industry, Invesco PowerShares continues to be fully committed to maintaining and developing a comprehensive product line. We have actively introduced several innovative ETFs to the market in the past year and we anticipate introducing new products in the months ahead.”

At an Oct. 5, 2010 meeting, the PowerShares Funds Board of Trustees approved the closings. The final day of trading on The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (“NASDAQ”) and NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca”) will be Dec. 14, 2010.

Shareholders may sell their holdings on or before Dec. 14, 2010, and may incur typical transaction fees from their broker-dealer. Shareholders who do not sell their holdings on or before Dec. 14, 2010, will receive cash equal to the amount of the net asset value of their shares, which will include any capital gains and dividends, in the cash portion of their brokerage accounts on the liquidation date (currently scheduled for Dec. 21, 2010). Shareholders will generally recognize a capital gain or loss equal to the amount received for their shares over their adjusted basis in such shares.

The affected ETFs are listed below:

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