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Hearing Date: November 22, 2011

Time: 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Location: New York, New York

Dan M. Berkowitz

General Counsel

Jonathan L. Marcus

Deputy General Counsel

Robert B. Wasserman

Chief Counsel, Division of Clearing and Risk

Martin B. White

Assistant General Counsel

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

3 Lafayette Centre

1155 21st Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20581

(202) 418-5129

mwhite@cftc.gov

UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

In re:

MF GLOBAL, INC. 

Debtor.

Case No. 11-2790 (MG) SIPA

STATEMENT OF THE COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION IN 

SUPPORT OF TRUSTEE’S EXPEDITED APPLICATION FOR ENTRY OF AN ORDER 

ESTABLISHING PARALLEL CLAIMS PROCESSES FOR COMMODITIES AND 

SECURITIES CLAIMS AND EXPEDITED MOTION FOR AN ORDER APPROVING 

FURTHER EMERGENCY TRANSFERS AND DISTRIBUTIONS TO CUSTOMERS 

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“Commission”) supports the Trustee’s 

recently filed Expedited Application for Entry of an Order Establishing Parallel Claims 

Processes for Commodities and Securities Claims (“Expedited Application”) and Expedited 

Motion for an Order Approving Further Emergency Transfers and Distributions to Customers

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(“Expedited Motion”). The requested orders will put in place mechanisms for the prompt 

initiation of the claims process for MF Global Inc. (“MFGI”) commodity customers as well as 

for the transfer to accounts accessible to such customers of 60% of funds now held in “cashonly” commodity accounts with MFGI. The Commission expects the Trustee to use the 

mechanisms put in place to move as promptly as is practicable and prudent to determine 

commodity customers’ pro rata share of MFGI customer funds, return funds to customers, and 

place all customers on an equal footing. The Commission notes that the Trustee has advised the 

Court in its Expedited Motion that it expects to be able to make one or more additional interim 

distributions as part of the expedited claims process, with a goal of ensuring equal treatment of 

all of MFGI’s customers. The Commission will continue to work diligently to identify and 

recover all MFGI commodity customer funds.

The Commission believes that the approach to determining commodity customer claims 

and returning commodity customer funds that would be put in place by grant of the Expedited 

Application and Expedited Motion would be preferable to the approach implicit in the motion 

filed by Thomas A. Butler, Jr. et al. on November 8, 2011. That motion seeks an order directing 

the trustee to effectuate a withdrawal or transfer of 85% of the funds currently held in movants’

segregated commodity customer accounts at MFGI.

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 The Commission believes, in particular,

that the systematic approach to addressing all customer claims reflected in the Trustee’s 

 

1 Movants state that the Commission believes that MFGI currently holds approximately 88.4% of 

the funds necessary to make whole each of its commodity account holders. Motion at 2. That 

assertion is incorrect. At the hearing before this Court held on November 2, 2011, counsel for 

the Commission explained “The last number we have [for the shortfall in MFGI segregated 

funds] is something on the order of $600 million. But one cannot say that that is the final 

number.” Doc. 63-3 at 20. As of now, the size of the shortfall remains uncertain despite the 

diligent efforts of the Trustee and the CFTC to ascertain the precise amount.

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Expedited Application and Expedited Motion is preferable to one involving piecemeal motions 

by limited groups of customers. 

The Commission will continue to play an active role in this liquidation proceeding to 

assist the Trustee in carrying out his duties with regard to commodity customers and to help 

ensure that the process for the return of customer funds that would be put in place by the 

Trustee’s Expedited Application and Expedited Motion will proceed as expeditiously and 

equitably as possible.

Respectfully submitted,

Dan M. Berkowitz

General Counsel

Jonathan L. Marcus

Deputy General Counsel

Robert B. Wasserman

Chief Counsel, Division of Clearing

 and Risk

/s/ Martin B. White 

Martin B. White

Assistant General Counsel

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

3 Lafayette Centre

1155 21st Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20581

(202) 418-5129

mwhite@cftc.gov

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