On April 3, 2012, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) published final rules (the “Final Rules”) implementing the “internal business conduct” provisions of Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The Final Rules primarily address a detailed set of recordkeeping, risk management, conflicts of interest, and compliance requirements for swap dealers and major swap participants. The Final Rules also implement new conflicts of interest and compliance requirements for existing futures commission merchants and introducing brokers. The effective date of the Final Rules is June 4, 2012, although the CFTC has subjected specific requirements of the Final Rules to various delayed compliance dates, beginning July 2, 2012. The memo discusses key requirements of the Final Rules together with implementation challenges posed by these new obligations.
