CFTC Chairman Timothy Massad Resigns

Massad will step down effective January 20 ─ when president-elect Donald Trump officially takes office ─  after having served in the role since June 5, 2014. This will be the third current vacancy for the CFTC, which typically consists of five commissioners.

Sharon Bowen and J. Christopher Giancarlo, both of whom were sworn in June 2014, will be the only two commissioners following Massad's departure.

"I came to the CFTC with a number of priorities, and I am proud we have made significant progress in every area. We have largely finished implementing the regulatory framework for swaps, and have concentrated on the areas posing the greatest risk to the financial system. We have taken many actions to make sure commercial businesses can continue using the derivatives markets efficiently and effectively to hedge routine commercial risk and engage in price discover," said Massad in a statement. "We have improved international coordination by harmonizing rules in many areas, strengthening relationships, and working with other regulators on oversight of markets, all of which has reduced inconsistency and the risk of regulatory arbitrage. We have engaged in robust enforcement efforts to hold bad actors accountable and protect users of these markets. And we have taken action to address the new challenges and opportunities in the derivatives markets, particularly cyber threats, clearinghouse resilience, and the increased use of automated trading."