CFTC warns against broad event contract self-certification filings

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division of Market Oversight has issued an advisory aimed at operators of event contract markets, reminding them of the proper procedures for submitting self-certifications of a series. The guidance takes issue with a growing trend of filing broad, template-style certifications that lump together numerous potential event contract variations into a single submission.

According to the regulator, this practice hampers the division's capacity to verify that a designated contract market has supplied all necessary information and analysis required under Commission Regulation § 40.2. It also raises questions about whether the market has properly assessed the settlement methodology, data sources, and conformity with core principles for each contract it plans to list.

The advisory further clarifies the circumstances under which closely related event contracts may be certified as a class or submitted for approval pursuant to Commission Regulations §§ 40.2(d) or 40.3.