CFTC Commissioner Announces Three Staff Appointments

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC CFTC The 1974 Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) in the United States created the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Commission protects and regulates market activities against manipulation, fraud, and abuse trade practices and promotes fairness in futures contracts. The CEA also included the Sad-Johnson Agreement, which defined the authority and responsibilities for the monitoring of financial contracts between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commiss The 1974 Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) in the United States created the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Commission protects and regulates market activities against manipulation, fraud, and abuse trade practices and promotes fairness in futures contracts. The CEA also included the Sad-Johnson Agreement, which defined the authority and responsibilities for the monitoring of financial contracts between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commiss Read this Term) announced three new appointments on Monday for the staff. According to the press release, Chris Lucas will serve as Chief of Staff and Counsel, Terry Arbit will serve as Senior Counsel, and Elizabeth Mastrogiacomo will also serve as Senior Counsel.

From BNY Mellon, where he was Co-Head of US Government Affairs, Lucas joins the office of Commissioner Mersinger. In his previous role with BNY Mellon, Lucas served as Counsel to Small Business Committee Ranking Member Olympia Snowe (R-ME) where he was the senator's key staffer during the consideration of the Dodd-Frank Act. Lucas graduated from the University of Rochester and Brooklyn Law School with a BA and JD, respectively.

Arbit joins Commissioner Mersinger's office after working closely with her at the office of former Commissioner Dawn Stump. Specifically, he offered legal and policy advice on matters arising mainly from the Division of Market Oversight, the Market Participants Division and the Legal Division, as well as recommended actions from the Division of Enforcement.

Arbit worked at the agency for 17 years from 1996 to 2013, in a variety of roles. As a lawyer, Arbit spent 12 years in private practice, and he began his government service with 5 years with the Resolution Trust Corporation, which was the receiver for failed savings and loan institutions. His degrees are a joint MA/BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD from the University of Chicago Law School.

Moreover, Mastrogiacomo was most recently the Senior Counsel to former Commissioner Dawn Stump before joining Commissioner Mersinger's office. Commissioner Stump consulted Libby on clearing and cross-border derivatives issues, including the regulation Regulation Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Like any other industry with a high net worth, the financial services industry is tightly regulated to help curb illicit behavior and manipulation. Each asset class has its own set of protocols put in place to combat their respective forms of abuse.In the foreign exchange space, regulation is assumed by authorities in multiple jurisdictions, though ultimately lacking a binding international order. Who are the Industry’s Leading Regulators?Regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority ( Read this Term of non-US central counterparties and other non-US infrastructure providers, the CFTC's response to Brexit and the agenda for the Global Markets Advisory Committee, which Stump led.

Among her clients are the CFTC, the SEC, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the FDIC and Congress. In addition to extensive experience with international standards setting bodies, Libby has extensive knowledge of central counterparty resilience, recovery and resolution. Libby holds a BBA from College of William and Mary as well as a JD from George Washington University Law School.

“At such a critical moment for the CFTC, I am delighted to welcome Chris, Terry and Libby to my team. Their deep expertise will be invaluable as we work to promote integrity, resilience and innovation within the CFTC and more broadly in US markets,” Summer Mersinger, the CFTC Commissioner, commented.

Recent Staff Appointments

Recently, the CFTC announced that Bruce Fekrat will serve as the Chief Counsel and Natasha C. Robinson Coates and Lillian A. Cardona will serve as interim Senior Counsels.