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CFTC Opens the Door for Passive Software Providers in Derivatives Markets
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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…
NJ Gaming Chief: “It’s a Wonderful World to Be an iGaming Operator”
June 11, 2021
NJ Gaming Chief: “It’s a Wonderful World to Be an iGaming Operator”
By: Jacob Grubman
With a new bill authorizing online gaming in New Jersey for the first time in 2013, Department of Gaming Enforcement Director David Rebuck and his staff went looking for ways to assuage industry concerns that online firms would “cannibalize” business from the already-struggling retail operations in Atlantic City. “It was going to cannibalize it, intuitively: ‘We’re going to lose people; they’re not going to come…
Will New Jersey be the center of the Esports Universe? According to the Head of the NJ Division of Gaming Enforcement, that’s the goal
May 26, 2021
Will New Jersey be the center of the Esports Universe? According to the Head of the NJ Division of Gaming Enforcement, that’s the goal
By: Nicole Kardell
The EGR’s East Coast Virtual Briefing 2021, took place May 26, 2021 with a packed agenda, including revealing the winner of the Ifrah Pitch Competition. We wanted to provide some highlights on developments in esports as a gambling vertical. Esports was the focus of a Q&A session hosted by Chris Grove, a partner at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming. Grove interviewed the director of New Jersey…
Coming to [North] America: Content Regulation for Gaming Ads and Marketing
April 28, 2021
Coming to [North] America: Content Regulation for Gaming Ads and Marketing
By: Nicole Kardell
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario recently published its Draft Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming (“Draft Standards”). The purpose of the 50-page document is “to ensure that regulated entities have a sound control environment, and an organizational structure that promotes good governance, accountability and oversight, as well as transparency in dealings with the AGCO.” Among the areas of oversight (which are broad reaching) is…
Following Trend, Arizona Pro Teams Get In On Sports Wagering Action
April 23, 2021
Following Trend, Arizona Pro Teams Get In On Sports Wagering Action
By: Ifrah Law
This article was originally published on Forbes.com on April 16, 2021.
Maryland Legislature Poised to Send Sports Gambling Bill to the Governor
April 13, 2021
Maryland Legislature Poised to Send Sports Gambling Bill to the Governor
By: Ifrah Law
As part of the 2020 election, Maryland voters approved a Constitutional amendment to allow sports betting. In February, I reported on the Maryland legislature’s efforts to pass a new bill to legalize and regulate sports gambling. The state passed another milestone yesterday when the Maryland Senate unanimously approved a new sports wagering bill. The bill is the result of a compromise reached between the House…
