CFTC Chair Timothy G. Massad tendered his resignation to President Obama. He will leave the CFTC on January 20, 2017. In a statement, which was accompanied by a 16-page summary of the CFTC's accomplishments during his two-and-a-half-year tenure, Chair Massad asserted that the Commission had realized his agenda:

"I came to the CFTC with a number of priorities, and I am proud we have made significant progress in every area."

Chair Massad highlighted accomplishments during his tenure. The CFTC:

  • ensured that "commercial businesses [could] continue using the derivatives markets efficiently and effectively to hedge routine commercial risk and engage in price discovery";
  • "worked to ensure clearinghouses are stronger and more resilient through enhanced risk surveillance, new supervisory stress testing, and the development and completion of recovery and wind down plans and rules";
  • "largely finished implementing the regulatory framework for swaps";
  • "improved international coordination";
  • "engaged in robust enforcement efforts"; and
  • took action to "address the new challenges and opportunities in the derivatives markets, particularly cyber threats, clearinghouse resilience, and the increased use of automated trading."

Chair Massad emphasized that he "worked to make sure the rules focus on where the greatest risk exists, in transactions between large financial institutions," and to ensure they were "largely harmonized with other domestic and international requirements." He also noted that the clearinghouses are "stronger and more resilient," through enhanced risk surveillance, new supervisory stress testing, and the development and completion of recovery wind down plans and rules. 

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