Plaza 5, 185 Hudson St #2200 

Jersey City, NJ 07311

July 21, 2020

Via email to FOIAsubmissions@cftc.gov

Assistant Secretary of the Commission for FOIA

Privacy and Sunshine Acts Compliance

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Three Lafayette Centre

1155 21st Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20581

Re: FOIA Confidential Treatment Request of Appendix A

Dear Assistant Secretary:

DW SEF LLC (“DW SEF”) hereby requests that the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading 

Commission (the “Commission”) accord confidential treatment under the Freedom of 

Information Act (the “FOIA”) to the attached appendix (“Appendix A”) which was 

submitted to the Commission on this date. This request pertains to all material in 

Appendix A, and an additional redacted version of Appendix A is included with this 

submission. DW SEF requests that confidential treatment be afforded as long as the 

Commission retains Appendix A. In accordance with the Commission’s FOIA 

regulations, Appendix A bears the designation “Confidential Treatment Requested by 

DW SEF LLC”.

This request for confidential treatment under the FOIA is made pursuant to Commission 

Regulations 40.8 and 145.9(d), as Appendix A contains information that would reveal 

the trade secrets or confidential commercial or financial information of DW SEF and its 

affiliates. As required by Commission Regulation 40.8(c)(1), DW SEF has submitted, 

together with this request, a detailed written justification in support of the confidentiality 

of Appendix A.

This request shall not be construed as a waiver of any protection from disclosure or 

confidential treatment under Commission Regulations or any other protection from 

disclosure or confidential treatment accorded by law, and DW SEF will rely on and 

invoke any such confidentiality protection with respect to Appendix A. DW SEF requests 

that the Commission advise the undersigned, its representative, in advance of any 

disclosure of Appendix A pursuant to the FOIA so that this request for confidential 

treatment may be further substantiated. DW SEF further requests that if any of the 

Confidential Information is to be disclosed to Congress or any other federal or state 

governmental agency or department, a request for confidential treatment be made by 

the Commission on DW SEF’s behalf, or that we be permitted to make such a request 

directly.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned at 646-

560-7223 or by email at Gregory.Compa@tradeweb.com.

Very truly yours,

Gregory Compa

Chief Compliance Officer

DW SEF LLC
APPENDIX A 

IRS Fee Schedule

(Blackline and Clean Versions)

[REDACTED]
Plaza 5, 185 Hudson St #2200 

Jersey City, NJ 07311

FOIA CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT REQUESTED

July 21, 2020

Assistant Secretary of the Commission for FOIA

Privacy and Sunshine Acts Compliance

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Three Lafayette Centre

1155 21st Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20581

Re: FOIA Detailed Written Justification 

Dear Assistant Secretary:

This detailed written justification for confidential treatment of the attached appendix 

(“Appendix A”) under the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) is made pursuant to U.S. 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“Commission”) Regulations 40.8 and 

145.9(d), as Appendix A contains information that would reveal the trade secrets or 

confidential commercial or financial information of DW SEF LLC (“DW SEF”) and its 

affiliates.

The general test for determining whether commercial information is exempt from 

disclosure under FOIA pursuant to this exemption is whether release of the information 

would “cause substantial harm to the competitive positions of the person from whom the 

information was obtained.” Acumenics Research & Tech. v. Dep’t of Justice, 843 F.2d 

800, 807 (4th Cir. 1988) (quoting National Parks & Conservation Ass’n v. Morton, 498 

F.2d 765, 770 (D.C. Cir. 1974)). There is no requirement to demonstrate actual 

competitive harm, rather “[a]ctual competition and the likelihood of substantial 

competitive injury is all that need to be shown.” Gulf & Western Indus., Inc. v. United 

States, 615 F.2d 527, 530 (D.C. Cir. 1979). Information is considered confidential where 

(i) there is actual competition in the relevant market, and (ii) disclosure is likely to cause 

substantial competitive injury. Id. With regard to proof of potential injury, evidence 

demonstrating the potential for economic harm is sufficient, and neither the omission 

nor the courts must conduct a sophisticated economic analysis to determine the likely 

effects of disclosure. Utah v. Bahe et al., 256 F.3d 967, 970 (10th Cir. 2001); Public 

Citizen Health Research Group v. Food & Drug Admin., 704 F.2d 1280, 1291 (D.C. Cir. 

1983).

The information contained in Appendix A includes non-public information regarding 

pricing, business structure and financial incentives relating to certain technological 

means for accessing DW SEF. DW SEF believes that disclosure of this information 

would provide its competitors with valuable insights regarding DW SEF’s clients, access 
CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT REQUESTED BY DW SEF LLC PURSUANT TO 17 CFR PART 145

to its products, and how DW SEF operates and funds its business. Disclosure of such 

information would allow other swap execution facilities insight into the strengths and 

weaknesses of DW SEF which could be used to achieve a competitive advantage. 

Disclosure of Appendix A would thus result in precisely the type of competitive harm to 

DW SEF that the provisions of FOIA and 17 C.F.R. § 145.9(d)(ii) are designed to 

prevent. See National Parks & Conservation Ass’n v. Kleppe, 547 F.2d 673, 684 (D.C. 

Cir. 1976) (prohibiting disclosure where it would “provide competitors with valuable 

insights into the operational strengths and weaknesses” of a company). Disclosure of 

the Confidential Information would provide DW SEF’s competitors with an informational 

windfall at DW SEF’s expense that they are not entitled to under FOIA. See Worthington 

Compressors, Inc. v. Costle, 662 F.2d 45, 52 (D.C. Cir. 1981) (“as a matter basic to our 

free enterprise system, private business information should be afforded appropriate 

protection, at least from competitors”). The Confidential Information thus falls squarely 

within the type of information that the provisions of FOIA and Commission Regulation 

145.9(d)(ii) are designed to protect from disclosure.

For the foregoing reasons, DW SEF respectfully requests that the Commission maintain 

the confidential privilege afforded to this type of information and refrain from releasing 

Appendix A as such action could prove harmful to DW SEF.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned at 646-

560-7223 or by email at Gregory.Compa@tradeweb.com.

Very truly yours,

Gregory Compa

Chief Compliance Officer

DW SEF LLC
CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT REQUESTED BY DW SEF LLC PURSUANT TO 17 CFR PART 145

APPENDIX A 

IRS Fee Schedule

(Blackline and Clean Versions)