FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 22, 2018
Contact: Nick Jacobs, 202-618-6430 or njacobs@bettermarkets.com

Washington, D.C. – Dennis Kelleher, President and CEO of Better Markets, issued this statement following the proposed cuts to the CFTC’s budget in the Congressional spending bill:

“The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is the cop responsible for policing Wall Street’s biggest derivatives dealers, which are also the most dangerous too-big-to-fail Wall Street banks.  Chronic annual underfunding of the CFTC is indefensible, but actually cutting its budget as was just done is despicable.  It’s as if the politicians in 1920s Chicago let Al Capone set the budget for the police department. 

“Unregulated, high risk and opaque derivatives were at the core of causing and spreading the devastating 2008 financial crash.  To prevent that from happening again, regulation, transparency and competition in the derivatives markets were required.  The Dodd-Frank financial protection law assigned those weighty responsibilities to the CFTC, but they have been prevented from doing that due to a pathetic lack of resources.  No one benefits from this other than the oligopoly of Wall Street derivatives dealers who are protecting their profits at the expense of everyone else in America.

“In any rational world or a world where decisions are based on merit or risk-assessment, the CFTC’s annual budget would be more than double what it is.  We again applaud CFTC Chairman Giancarlo for courageously fighting for a very modest increase in the CFTC budget.  Yet, even that was too much for the Wall Street derivatives dealers’ club.  This is a brazen slap in the face to the American people by Wall Street’s biggest banks and their Congressional allies.”

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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies – including many in finance – to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.com.