August 17, 2009 

Received CFTC 

Records Section 

8/nlo? 

Mr. David A. Stawick 

Secretary to the Commission 

Commodities Futures Trading Commission 

Three Lafayette Center 

1155 21s1 Street, N.W. 

Washington D.C. 20581 

secretary@cftc.gov 

C.F.T.C. 

OFFICE Of THE SECRETARIAT 

£009 AUG 18 Ar110 95 

COMMENT 

Re: Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Account 0\vnership 

and Control Report-- 74 Fed.Reg. 31642 (July 2, 2009) 

Dear Mr. Stawick: 

MF Global lnc. 1 ("MF Global") respectfully submits these comments regarding the 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission's ("Commission's") advanced notice of 

proposed rulemaking on establishing a new "account ownership and control report" 

("OCR"). The notice states that the CFTC has determined to create this report in order to 

collect certain ownership, control, and related information for all trading accounts active 

on U.S. futures exchanges. 

MF Global fully understands the Commission's need to "have the information necessary 

to conduct effective oversight, ensure market integrity, and ptotect customer from fraud 

and abuse" and we look forward to contributing to the rule-making process as it goes 

forward. MF Global has participated in the FIA 's consideration of this proposal and 

shares the many concerns that the FIA expresses in its comment letter. 

1 MF Global Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of MF Global Ltd. which, through its 

various affiliates, is a leading broker of exchange-listed futures and options with offices 

in Bermuda, New York, London, Chicago, Paris, Mumbai, Singapore, Sydney, Toronto, 

Tokyo, Hong Kong, Taipei and Dubai. We provide execution and clearing services for 

exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivative products as well as for non-derivative 

foreign exchange products and securities in the cash market. MF Global operates across a 

broad range of trading markets, including interest rates, equities, currencies, energy, 

metals, agricultural and other commodities. MF Global operates in 12 countries on more 

than 70 exchanges, providing access to the world's largest and fastest growing financial 

markets. 

MF Global inc. 

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lne essence of the Commission's goal in this undertaking is to expand the amount of 

ownership and control information it gathers and to bridge the gap between the two types 

of information itnow receives: individual transactions reported on exchange trade 

registers and aggregate positions reported in large trader data. One point that the 

Commission recognizes in its notice, however, bears ~mphasis. Trade registers do not 

contain the ownership and control information that the Commission wants to obtain. We 

mention this becau~e MF Global, though a major clearing firm, also conducts a very 

substantial execution-only business. Most significantly (and as the Commission is aware), 

the use of "give-up" accounts in the trading of futures contracts has been a common 

practice for a substantial period of time. Indeed, it was for this reason that the futures 

industry requested and, in April 2007, the Commission and the Financial Crimes 

Enforcement Network ('<FINCEN") provided guidance that an FCM that was only 

executing trades did not have a "fotrnal relationship" with the commodity or option 

customer for the purposes of the customer identification rule. See FinCEN/CFTC 

Guidance, Application of the Customer ldentificationProgram Rule to Futures 

Commission Merchants Operating as Executing and Clearing Brokers in Give-:-Up 

Arrangements, FTN-2007-GOOl (Apr. 20, 2007), available at 

http://www.fincen.gov/starntes regs/guidance/pdf/cft:c fincen guidance. pdf. In addition 

to "give-up" accounts, other types of accounts that are operationally set up for execution 

only purpose and for which an FCM may have no ownership or control information 

include a trading desk execution account or a block al1ocation account. 

lnis proposal presents the industry- and the Commission- with perhaps one of their 

most significant operational and IT challenges to date. For this reason, MF Global 

strongly supports the FIA's recommendation that this be approached as a collaborative 

effort and form a committee or working group in which the Commission includes FCMs, 

US contract markets and the trade processing vendors whose systems will be directly 

affected. MF Global will be pleased to participate. 

We appreciate the opportunity to offer these comments. If any member of the 

Commission or its staffhas any questions, you contact the undersigned at 212 589 6235 

or Dennis Klcjna, Assistant General Counsel, at 212 935 3750. 

Sincerely, 

'7 

c:::~~t~.c_;<_ '12 .. CkA-'-··lA __ _ LaurieR. Ferber 

Executive Vice President and 

General Counsel