CME Group announced that Executive Chairman Terry Duffy will appear today before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, to discuss the MF Global bankruptcy.
"MF Global put market users in a tragic position," said Duffy. "In the days leading up to MF Global's bankruptcy, daily reviews of the company's segregation reports showed the firm remained in full compliance with segregation requirements. Any transfers of customer funds made by MF Global for the benefit of that firm are very serious violations of CME Group rules and of CFTC regulations."
"With respect to the unprecedented loss of customer segregated funds caused by MF Global, CME Group's efforts have been to minimize the impact that this extraordinary event has had on the futures industry and our customers," Duffy added. "Since the MF Global bankruptcy, we have worked to speed customer access to trading accounts, transfer customer positions, and provide the Trustee with a $550 million guarantee to encourage him to quickly release customer funds that were securely held at CME Clearing. Moving forward, CME Group intends to work with the Congress, regulators and industry leaders to strengthen customer safeguards at the firm level. We will do all that we can to prevent a repeat episode in the future."
The hearing is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Eastern time in the Hart Senate Office Building. Duffy's written testimony will also be available on www.cmegroup.com at that time.