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CFTC Opens the Door for Passive Software Providers in Derivatives Markets
FEATURED
September 28, 2026
CFTC Opens the Door for Passive Software Providers in Derivatives Markets
By: John Mikuta
In a new no-action letter, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) recently opened the door for software developers building software to facilitate trading in derivatives and futures. The CFTC’s Market Participants Division (“MPD”) issued a no-action position providing that it would not recommend bringing an enforcement action against a “passive software provider,” or “PSP”, for failing to register as an introducing broker (“IB”) or associated person of an IB under the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”).[1] As background, the CEA requires any person who, for compensation or profit, “is engaged in soliciting and in accepting orders” for futures and swaps to register as an IB.[2] Individuals performing that work for an IB must also register themselves as associated persons.[3] The CFTC…
Trust the Future You Trade: Lessons About Prediction Market Surveillance from the DACOM Summit
September 23, 2026
Trust the Future You Trade: Lessons About Prediction Market Surveillance from the DACOM Summit
By: John Mikuta
Prediction markets are no longer a niche offering confined to a small corner of the internet. The rapid growth of prediction markets has launched them into the mainstream as a meaningful part of the financial ecosystem. But with that growth comes many of the same market integrity and compliance challenges that more traditional financial markets have long encountered. Prediction markets have faced public scrutiny over…
High Wire Act
September 22, 2026
High Wire Act
By: James Trusty
The federal statute known as the Wire Act (18 U.S.C. § 1084) has had a tumultuous history. For many years, the DOJ interpreted it to include restrictions on both sporting events and non-sporting contests. That changed dramatically in 2011, when the Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC”), responding to states seeking clarification before establishing state lotteries, published an analysis of the Wire Act. After a thorough…
DOJ High-Wire Act
April 29, 2019
DOJ High-Wire Act
By: James Trusty
Heavyweight parties are slugging it out in a lawsuit in the Granite State, and Ifrah Law is taking a lead role in protecting the interests of America’s rapidly growing online gaming industry. The New Hampshire civil case comes on the heels of the Department of Justice (DOJ) releasing an interpretation of the federal Wire Act that threatens to bring within its scope all gambling activity,…
Update on 1/14/19 OLC Wire Act Opinion – All Eyes on New Hampshire
April 9, 2019
Update on 1/14/19 OLC Wire Act Opinion – All Eyes on New Hampshire
By: Jeff Ifrah
(This post was originally published on 1/15/2019 and updated on 4/8/2019) On Jan. 14, 2019, the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion reversing its 2011 position on the Wire Act and sports betting, contradicting not just itself but decisions by at least two District Courts and dicta by the U.S. Supreme Court by maintaining that the Wire Act prohibits all interstate…
How to Ensure Your Media Affiliate Follows Pennsylvania Gaming Law
March 28, 2019
How to Ensure Your Media Affiliate Follows Pennsylvania Gaming Law
By: Steven Eichorn
As discussed in an earlier blog post, New Jersey’s licensing requirements for affiliate marketers impose significantly different structures depending on the revenue model. If the affiliate marketer only plans to work with casinos in a flat fee model (e.g. CPA or other form of pre-determined compensation), then they must register as a vendor. The vendor registration process is quite straightforward, but it does limit the…
An Epic Fail: Complaint Against Fortnite Creator Based On Facts As Stale As Fruitcake
March 5, 2019
An Epic Fail: Complaint Against Fortnite Creator Based On Facts As Stale As Fruitcake
By: Nicole Kardell
Parents can get angry when their kids spend too much time or money on video games. We get it. But going after a gaming company in retaliation is probably not the best response. And doing so without actually understanding the game can result in, well, a giant waste of time, or, in a recent example, an epic fail. Last week, an angry parent filed a…
NASPL Responds to the DOJ Reversal of Opinion
February 5, 2019
NASPL Responds to the DOJ Reversal of Opinion
By: Ifrah Law
On February 4, 2019, the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (“NASPL”) issued a statement responding to the Department of Justice’s January 14, 2019, opinion regarding the Wire Act of 1961. In its statement, the NASPL hints that the DOJ failed to consider the effects its latest Wire Act opinion would have on state lotteries. The NASPL is a non-profit trade association that…
