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CFTC's Market Oversight Head Retires

By Staff Writer

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WASHINGTON (HedgeWorld.com)–Michael Gorham, director of the division of market oversight, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, resigned that post effective June 30.

Mr. Gorham is leaving to become director of the Center for Financial Markets, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago.

“I was extremely fortunate to have been asked to serve at the Commission during a period of

dramatic industry innovation, intense competition, and profound structural change,” he said in a statement.

CFTC chairman James E. Newsome recruited Mr. Gorham to become the first director of DMO when that division was created in 2002 as part of a restructuring of the CFTC to facilitate implementation of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000. The DMO handles the designation of new markets, reviews of new futures and options products and monitors the derivatives markets for signs of manipulation or abuse.

Mr. Gorham oversaw the designation of two new fully regulated exchanges during his tenure, the U.S. Futures Exchange, also known as Eurex U.S. (see Previous HedgeWorld Story) and HedgeStreet, a retail exchange focused on smaller-sized contracts, headquartered in San Mateo, Calif. He and his division processed eight new exempt markets and reviewed more than 450 new futures and options contracts.

Last month, Mr. Gorham stoked a smoldering controversy over silver and silver futures prices when he issued a statement in response to the theories of Theodore Butler, Jupiter, Fla. Mr. Gorham wrote emphatically that there is no evidence in support of Mr. Butler’s contention that short-sellers have colluded to keep prices low (see Previous HedgeWorld Story).

“The Commission’s loss is the Illinois Institute of Technology’s gain,” said Mr. Newsome in a statement. “On behalf of my fellow Commissioners, I wish Mike every success in his future endeavor.”

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Contact Robert F. Keane with questions or comments at:

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