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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…
Caught Red Handed, But What is Pete Rose’s Crime?
September 10, 2025
Caught Red Handed, But What is Pete Rose’s Crime?
By: James Trusty
What exactly is the hustle that has kept Pete Rose from safely sliding into the Baseball Hall of Fame? Recently released FBI files from the late 1980’s put little flesh on the skeleton in Rose’s closet, but plenty of normative questions remain about Rose’s now posthumous candidacy. The FBI reports lay out how a local bar in Franklin, Ohio, called Jonathan’s, was reportedly a front…
Silencing the Sidelines: Can Policies Protect Athletes from Harassment Without Suppressing Free Expression?
September 2, 2025
Silencing the Sidelines: Can Policies Protect Athletes from Harassment Without Suppressing Free Expression?
By: Abbey Block
With the new football season just around the corner, sports fans are donning their jerseys, checking the stats, and dialing in to watch their favorite athletes take the field. While the beginning of a new season is a time filled with excitement and anticipation, for many athletes – both professional and collegiate – it will also be the beginning of a season of harassment. Taunts,…
Horses, Casinos, and Prediction Markets – Old & New in Saratoga Springs
August 22, 2025
Horses, Casinos, and Prediction Markets – Old & New in Saratoga Springs
By: Michelle Cohen
Last week, I moderated a panel on the sizzling topic of prediction markets at the annual Racing and Gaming Conference at Saratoga. This conference brings together legislators, regulators, and industry professionals from a wide range of organizations in the gaming ecosphere – from horse trainers, to representatives of game suppliers and sports betting companies. It is a conference where the “old” (horse racing) and the…
Gambling Industry Takes on Addiction Prevention
July 28, 2025
Gambling Industry Takes on Addiction Prevention
By: Jordan Briggs
Last week, the National Council on Problem Gambling hosted advocates, regulators, counselors, and other industry participants in Columbus, Ohio for the National Conference on Gambling Addiction & Responsible Gambling 2025. With such a broad range of attendees, the conference offered many unique sessions geared towards different industry groups, including wellness sessions and recovery meetings alongside the overviews of ongoing, broad research and the operator-specific talks…
FAIR Treatment of Lost Bets
July 25, 2025
FAIR Treatment of Lost Bets
By: Avner Kronisch
Introduction On July 7, 2025, Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) introduced H.R. 4304, the Fair Accounting for Income Realized from Betting Earnings Taxation Act, commonly known as the FAIR Bet Act.[1] Two days later, Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced the Senate companion bill, S. 2230, titled Facilitating Useful Loss Limitations to Help Our Unique…
