U.S. COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION

Three Lafayette Centre

1155 21st Street, NW

Washington, DC 20581

Telephone: (202) 418-5000

Facsimile: (202) 418-5521

Division of

Market Oversight

CFTC Letter No. 16-33

No-Action

April 8, 2016

Division of Market Oversight

Conditional Time-Limited No-Action Relief 

Under Part 17 of the Commission’s Regulations

Regarding Identifying Information Reportable 

on Form 102A and Form 102B

Allison Lurton

Senior Vice President and General Counsel

The Futures Industry Association

2001 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Suite 600

Washington, DC 20006

Dear Ms. Lurton:

This letter is in response to FIA’s request dated February 24, 2016 (the “February 2016 FIA 

Letter”), to the Division of Market Oversight (“DMO” or “Division”) of the Commodity Futures 

Trading Commission (“Commission”), on behalf of the members of the Futures Industry 

Association (“FIA”) that are required to submit certain reports under Part 17 of the 

Commission’s regulations. In the February 2016 FIA Letter, FIA requested no-action relief from 

certain data reporting requirements of Part 17 of the Commission’s regulations that were 

implemented pursuant to the Ownership and Control (“OCR”) Final Rule (the “OCR Final 

Rule”).

1

 

 1 Commission, Ownership and Control Reports, Forms 102/102S, 40/40S, and 71; Final Rule, 78 FR 

69178 (November 18, 2013). Terms not otherwise defined in this letter shall have the meaning assigned 

to them in the OCR Final Rule or in the Commission’s regulations. The Commission adopted the OCR 

Final Rule in 2013 to enhance its identification of futures and swap market participants. 
2

I. Background; OCR Final Rule2

The OCR Final Rule requires the electronic submission of trader identification and market 

participant data on updated Form 102 and new Form 102B. Form 102B is an entirely new form, 

introduced by the OCR Final Rule. Among other fields, the new and updated forms require the 

reporting of the following information:

• Form 102A: a position-based reporting form, which requires the reporting of both special 

accounts and the trading accounts that comprise special accounts.

• Form 102B: requires the reporting of trading accounts that exceed a stated volume 

threshold during a single trading day (“volume threshold accounts”), regardless of 

whether these positions remain open at the end of the day.

II. February 2016 FIA Letter; April 2016 CFTC NAL

FIA asserted in the February 2016 FIA Letter that, “The OCR Rule does not take into account 

the conflicting legal obligations imposed on reporting entities by the OCR Rule and foreign 

privacy laws. The Commission should provide data masking protection for certain data fields, as 

necessary, on all OCR Forms where there is a reasonable belief that foreign privacy law prevents 

the disclosure.” 

In response to the February 2016 FIA Letter, the Division is providing relief, via this no-action 

letter (the “April 2016 CFTC NAL”), from reporting certain identifying information on Form 

102A and Form 102B that may be subject to privacy statutes or regulations in non-U.S. 

jurisdictions.

3

 Relief will be available from the date of this April 2016 CFTC NAL until March 

1, 2017,

4 subject to certain conditions more fully described below.

The additional no-action relief described in this April 2016 CFTC NAL may be relied upon by 

all parties that are obligated to report pursuant to the OCR Final Rule on either Form 102A or 

Form 102B (collectively, “Reporting Parties”).5 

 2 Important information related to the implementation of the OCR Final Rule, including the Technical 

Guidance Document discussed herein, is available on the Commission’s “Ownership and Control 

Reporting (OCR)” homepage at: http://www.cftc.gov/Forms/OCR

3 The Division is providing no-action relief with respect to other items raised by FIA in the February 2016 

FIA Letter via a separate no-action letter (CFTC Letter No. 16-32), issued on April 8, 2016.

4 At 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

5 See CFTC Letter No. 16-03 (Jan. 15, 2016) for a discussion of the procedure for seeking relief from the 

requirement to report identifying information, via Form 102S, pursuant to Part 20 of the Commission’s 

regulations. While the relief offered in this April 2016 CFTC NAL is largely based upon the relief offered 

under CFTC Letter No. 16-03, Reporting Parties seeking to mask Form 102A Identifying Information or 

Form 102B Identifying Information must refer to the terms and conditions of this April 2016 CFTC NAL. 

Reporting Parties may seek relief from the requirement to report the Form 102S fields that remain 

reportable pursuant to this April 2016 CFTC NAL in accordance with the procedure outlined in CFTC 
3

III. Summary of Upcoming No-Action Relief Addressing Privacy Issues.

Based on the FIA’s representations in the February 2016 FIA Letter, the Division believes that 

time-limited relief for Reporting Parties from the requirement to report Form 102A Identifying 

Information and Form 102B Identifying Information (as such terms are defined in Appendix A

hereto) is warranted under specific conditions. The relief offered in this April 2016 CFTC NAL

with respect to Form 102A Identifying Information and Form 102B Identifying Information does 

not otherwise impact Report Parties’ continuing obligations to submit Form 102A and Form 

102B pursuant to the Commission’s regulations.6

Accordingly, the Division will not recommend that the Commission commence an enforcement 

action against a Reporting Party for failure to report Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 

102B Identifying Information for any submission of Form 102A or Form 102B for which the 

Reporting Party has: 

(1) Formed a reasonable belief7 that statutory or regulatory prohibitions in a non-U.S. 

jurisdiction preclude the Reporting Party from reporting Form 102A Identifying 

Information or Form 102B Identifying Information; 

(2) Submitted a formal written request (a “Request”)8 to the relevant non-U.S. regulator 

or governing authority9 that: 

A. describes the Reporting Party’s reporting obligations with respect to the Form 

102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying Information at issue 

in the Request; 

 

Letter No. 16-03, available at: 

http://www.cftc.gov/idc/groups/public/@lrlettergeneral/documents/letter/16-03.pdf

6 Reporting Parties are required to submit Form 102A in accordance with Commission regulation 17.01(a) 

and Form 102B in accordance with Commission regulation 17.01(b). Nothing in this April 2016 CFTC 

NAL should be interpreted as altering the responsibility of a Reporting Party to submit Form 102A or 

Form 102B, even if Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying Information is masked 

pursuant to this April 2016 CFTC NAL. 

7 The Division notes that this no-action letter does not require any particular means of forming the 

requisite “reasonable belief.”

8 The Division notes that a Reporting Party may submit a request individually or rely on a request made 

by a group of market participants or an industry association on behalf of similarly situated entities, 

provided that such request addresses all fields of Form 102A Identifying Information and/or Form 102B 

Identifying Information that such Reporting Party proposes to mask. 

9 The Division notes that the relevant regulator or governing authority is one that enforces the regulations 

or statutes that the Reporting Party reasonably believes precludes it from reporting Form 102A 

Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying Information. In circumstances where more than one 

statute or regulation may govern, the Reporting Party must submit requests to each relevant non-U.S. 

regulator or governing authority. 
4

B. requests that the non-U.S. regulator or governing authority specifically 

identify any statutes or regulations that would prohibit the Reporting Party

from reporting Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying 

Information in connection with a Form 102A or Form 102B submission; and

C. requests that the non-U.S. regulator or governing authority specifically 

address the applicability of such statutes or regulations under the 

circumstances listed below, or any other circumstances relevant to the 

Reporting Party: 

i. the Reporting Party is located and registered in the non-U.S. 

jurisdiction; 

ii. the Reporting Party is located in the non-U.S. jurisdiction as a branch, 

including as a branch of a U.S. person; or

iii. the Reporting Party is located in the United States, but the legal entity 

or natural person to which the Form 102A Identifying Information or 

Form 102B Identifying Information relates is located in the non-U.S. 

jurisdiction. 

(3) Obtained a formal response to the Request10 from the relevant non-U.S. regulator or 

governing authority.11 Responses must specifically address items (2)(B) and (2)(C) 

above. A Reporting Party may mask Form 102A Identifying Information or 

Form 102B Identifying Information only to the extent that the non-U.S. 

regulator or governing authority has specifically indicated that reporting such 

information in connection with a Form 102A or Form 102B submission would 

violate the law of the non-U.S. jurisdiction.12

The Division will extend this relief from the date of this April 2016 CFTC NAL until the earlier 

of: (a) such time that the Reporting Party no longer holds a reasonable belief that a regulatory or 

statutory prohibition precludes it from reporting Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 

 10 The Division notes that a Reporting Party may rely on a formal response letter from a relevant non-U.S. 

regulator or governing authority that results from a Request made by group of market participants or by 

an industry association on behalf of similarly situated entities, so long as the content of the formal 

response letter addresses the facts and circumstances that pertain to the Reporting Party as it intends to 

rely on the relief in this April 2016 CFTC NAL. In circumstances where more than one statute or 

regulation governs, the Reporting Party must receive responses from each relevant non-U.S. regulator or 

governing authority. 

11 The non-U.S. regulator’s or governing authority’s formal response must be in English or English 

translation. 

12 For example, if the law of the non-U.S. jurisdiction prohibits reporting only with respect to natural 

persons, then a Reporting Party may mask information only with respect to a reportable owner or 

controller that is a natural person. Similarly, if the law of the non-U.S. jurisdiction states that reporting is 

permissible with the consent of the reportable legal entity or natural person, then Reporting Parties would 

be expected to obtain such consent and report Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B 

Identifying Information when submitting Form 102A or Form 102B. 
5

102B Identifying Information; and (b) March 1, 2017.

13 Such no-action relief is subject to the 

following conditions:14

i. The Reporting Party shall submit, to PrivacyLawReporting@cftc.gov (with the 

acronym “OCR” in the email subject line), copies of the Request described in clause 

(2) above submitted by the Reporting Party or on its behalf, as well as responses 

received from the relevant non-U.S. regulator or governing authority;

15

ii. The Reporting Party shall submit a Form 102A or Form 102B, as applicable, which 

shall include the country of the reportable owner or controller, and an indication of 

the Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying Information

masked pursuant to this April 2016 CFTC NAL. Reporting Parties should refer to the 

Technical Guidance Document, available on the Commission’s “Ownership and 

Control Reporting (OCR)” homepage, for more detailed instructions on masking such 

information;

16

iii. The Reporting Party shall report that information has been masked due to privacy law 

for each field of Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying 

Information not reported pursuant to this April 2016 CFTC NAL, in accordance with 

the instructions provided in the Technical Guidance Document, available on the 

Commission’s “Ownership and Control Reporting (OCR)” homepage; and 

iv. Upon the expiration of the relief pursuant to either clause (a) or (b) above, a 

Reporting Party shall make a corrective Form 102A or Form 102B submission for all 

Form 102A Identifying Information or Form 102B Identifying Information that was 

previously submitted in a masked form pursuant to this April 2016 CFTC NAL, by no 

later than 30 days from the date of such expiration. The Reporting Party shall contact 

the Commission’s Office of Data and Technology (“ODT”) prior to making such 

corrective Form 102A or Form 102B submission. Such submission shall be in a form 

and manner acceptable to ODT. 

 13 At 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

14 A Reporting Party may not continue to rely on the relief provided in this April 2016 CFTC NAL if a 

formal response letter outlined in clause (3) above is not issued to the Reporting Party or to a group of 

market participants or an industry association on its behalf and sent to the Commission in accordance with 

condition i below. 

15 Reporting Parties shall retain such documents as part of their compliance with Commission 

recordkeeping requirements.

16 See http://www.cftc.gov/Forms/OCR
6

This letter, and the no-action position taken herein, which is based on FIA’s representations, 

represents the views of the Division only, and does not necessarily represent the position or 

views of the Commission or of any other division or office of the Commission’s staff. The noaction position taken herein does not excuse affected persons from compliance with any other 

applicable requirements of the Commodity Exchange Act or the regulations thereunder. As with 

all no-action letters, the Division retains the authority to, in its discretion, further condition, 

modify, suspend, terminate or otherwise restrict the terms of the no-action relief provided herein.

If you have any questions concerning this correspondence, please contact Sebastian Pujol Schott, 

Associate Director, DMO, at (202) 418-5641, or Mark Schlegel, Special Counsel, DMO, at (202) 

418-5055. 

Sincerely yours,

_______________________________

Vincent McGonagle

Director

Division of Market Oversight
7

Appendix A

Information That May Be Masked in Accordance With This April 2016 CFTC NAL

“Form 102A Identifying Information” means the following information required on Questions 

10(ii) (Trading Account Owner(s)) and 10(iii) (Trading Account Controller(s)) on Form 102A: 

Question 10(ii):

i. Name of Trading Account Owner(s)

ii. Street Address (except that the country of the trading account owner(s) shall be provided) 

iii. City

iv. State 

v. Zip/Postal Code

vi. Phone Number

vii. Email Address

viii. Contact Name

ix. Contact Job Title

x. Contact Relationship to Owner

xi. Contact Phone Number

xii. Contact Email Address

xiii. Owner Website (if any)

xiv. Owner NFA ID (if any)

xv. Owner Legal Entity Identifier (if any)

Question 10(iii):

i. Name of Trading Account Controller(s)

ii. Street Address (except that the country of the trading account controller(s) shall be 

provided) 

iii. City

iv. State 

v. Zip/Postal Code

“Form 102B Identifying Information” means the following information required on Questions 

5 (Volume Threshold Account Owner(s)) and 6 (Volume Threshold Account Controller(s)) on 

Form 102B: 

Question 5:

i. Name of Volume Threshold Account Owner(s)

ii. Street Address (except that the country of the volume threshold account owner(s) shall be 

provided) 

iii. City

iv. State 

v. Zip/Postal Code

vi. Phone Number

vii. Email Address

viii. Contact Name

ix. Contact Job Title
8

x. Contact Relationship to Owner

xi. Contact Phone Number

xii. Contact Email Address

xiii. Owner Website (if any)

xiv. Owner NFA ID (if any)

xv. Owner Legal Entity Identifier (if any)

Question 6:

i. Name of Volume Threshold Account Controller(s)

ii. Street Address (except that the country of the volume threshold account controller(s)

shall be provided) 

iii. City

iv. State 

v. Zip/Postal Code