Operational Due Diligence

Following is contact information for regulators from 19 countries. These deal with issues both specific and ancillary to the futures industry. For more information, see the descriptions or visit the regulators’ Web sites.

Australia

Sydney NSW 2001
Australian Secuirities & Investments Commission
GPO Box 4866
(61) 2 9911-2000; fax(61) 2 9911-2634

E-mail: infoline@asic.gov.au;
Web: www.asic.gov.au
David Knott, chairman
Jillian Segal, deputy chair
Joe Longo, national director (enforcement)
Shane Tregillis, national director (regulation)

The ASIC is an independent government body that enforces and administers the corporations law and consumer protection law for investments, life and general insurance, superannuation and banking (except lending) in Australia.

Belgium

Banking & Finance Commission
Louizalaan 99
1000 Brussels
(32) 2 535-2211; fax (32) 2 535-2323

Jean-Louis Duplat, chairman
J. Meyers, C. Van Acker, F. Masai, F. T’Kint,
X. Dieux, L. Bammens, commission members

The Commission was created as an autonomous institution by royal decree on July 9, 1935. It supervises any company operating in Belgium as a credit institution as well as with public issues of securities, admissions to the stock exchange listing, takeover bids, stock markets and their intermediaries. It also supervises the information to be disclosed by the companies under its supervision.

Bermuda

Bermuda Monetary Authority
Burnaby House
26 Burnaby St.
Hamilton HM 11
Bermuda
(441) 295-5278; fax (441) 292-7471
E-mail: info@bma.bm;
Web: www.bma.bm

D. Munro Sutherland, general manager

Brazil

Comissao de Valores Mobiliarios (Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission)
Rua Sete de Setembro 111/32 andar
707010-500 Rio de Janeiro - RJ
(55) 21 212-0200; fax (55) 21 221-6769
Web: www.cvm.gov.br

Regional Offices:

SCN, Quadra 2, Bloco E
Edificio Corporate Financial Center - 4 andar
70712-900, Brasilia, DF
(55) 61 326-2000
fax (55) 61 3226-2048

Rua Formosa, 367-20 e 21 andares - Centro
01049-000, Sao Paulo - SP
(55) 11 226-2003
fax (55) 11 224-2049

The CVM regulates stock market equities and options, stock index futures and the operation of publicly held companies, and gives formal approval to the registration of stock funds and their managers and advisors.

Canada
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions
255 Albert St.
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H2
(613) 990-7788; fax (613) 993-6782

Web: www.osfi-bsif.gc.ca

Regulates and supervises banks, insurance, trust and loan companies, cooperative credit associations and fraternal benefit societies that are chartered, licensed or registered by the federal government and supervises federally regulated pension plans.

Regional offices:
P.O. Box 39
121 King St. West
Toronto, Ontario M5H 3T9
(416) 973-6662; fax (416) 973-7021

Complexe Guy Favreau
200 Rene Levesque Blvd. West
W. Tower, Room 903
Montreal, Quebec H2Z 1X4
(514) 283-4836; fax (514) 496-1726
1095 West Pender St., Suite 305; Box 11
Vancouver, British Columbia V6E 2M6
(604) 666-5335; fax (604) 666-6717

Various provincial governments also have regulatory authorities. Also, there are the following Securities Commissions:

Alberta Securities Commission
10025 Jasper Ave., 19th Floor
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 3Z5
(403) 427-5201; fax (403) 422-0777
British Columbia Securities Commission
1100-865 Hornby St.
Vancouver, British Columbia V6Z 2H4
(604) 660-4800; fax (604) 660-2688

Manitoba Securities Commission
405 Broadway Ave., Room 1128
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 3L6
(204) 945-2550; fax (204) 945-0330

Ireland
Central Bank of Ireland
P.O. Box 559

Dame Street
Dublin, 2
(35) 31 671-6666; fax (35) 31 671-6561
Web: www.centralbank.ie

The Central Bank of Ireland is responsible for the supervision of a wide range of financial institutions established in the International Financial Services Centre, banks and building societies, collective investment schemes, providers of investment services and investment advice, futures and options exchanges, stock exchanges, money brokers, etc.

IDA Ireland

Wilton Park House
Wilton Place
Dublin, 2
(353)-1-6034000; fax (353)-1-6034040
E-mail: idaireland@ida.ie;
Web: www.idaireland.com/home8.html

Japan

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

1-2-1 Kasumigaseki
Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8950, Japan
(81) 3 3591-2874; fax (81) 3 3597-8722
E-mail: koho_kaigai@nm.maff.go.jp;
Web: www.maff.go.jp
Ministry of Finance
3-1-1 Kasumigaseki
Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8940

(81) 3 3581-4111; fax (81) 3 5251-2103
E-mail: info@mof.go.jp;
Web: www.mof.go.jp
Ministry of International Trade and Industry
1-3-1 Kasumigaseki
Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8901
(81) 3 3501-1792; fax (81) 3 3501-6646

E-mail: webmail@miti.go.jp;
Web: www.miti.go.jp

Luxembourg

Instuit Monetaire Luxembourgeois

63, avenue de la Libert
L-2983 Luxembourg
(35) 2-402-929; fax (35) 2-492-180

Malaysia

Securities Commission

No.3 Persiaran Bukit Kiara
Bukit Kiara
50490 Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

603-6204-8000; fax 603-6201-5078
Web: www.sc.com.my
Ali Abdul Kadir, chairman

The Netherlands

Stichting Toezicht Effectenverkeer (Securities Board of the Netherlands)
Singel 542
1017 AZ

Amsterdam

(31) 20 553-5200; fax (31) 20 620-6649
Arthur Docters van Leeuwen, chairman
Bert Canneman, secretary, public relations

New Zealand
Securities Commission
P.O. Box 1179

Wellington

(64) 4 472-9830; fax (64) 4 472-8076
E-mail: seccom@sec-com.govt.nz;
Web: www.sec-com.govt.nz

Norway
Kredit tilsynet (Banking, Insurance and Securities Commission)
P.O. Box 100 Bryn Ostensjoveien 43
N-0611 Oslo 6
(47) 22-939-800; fax (47) 22-630-226

Singapore

Monetary Authority of Singapore
10 Shenton Way, MAS Bldg.
Singapore 079117
(65) 225-5577; fax (65) 229-9491
Telex: ORCHID RS 28174
Web: www.mas.gov.sg

Spain

Comision Nacional del Mercado de Valores

Paseo de la Castellana, 19
28046 Madrid
(34) 1 585-1500; fax (34) 1 319-3373
E-mail: dap@cnmv.es; Web: www.cnmv.es

Sweden

Finansinspektionen (Financial Supervisory Authority)
P.O. Box 7831
Regeringsgatan 48, 7th Floor
103 98 Stockholm
(46) 8-7878000; fax (46)-8 241335

E-mail: finansinspektionen@fi.se
United Kingdom
The Financial Services Authority
25 The North Colonnade

Canary Wharf
London, U.K. E14 5HS
44 (171) 676-1000; fax 44 (171) 676-1099
E-mail: enquiries@fsa.gov.uk;
Web: www.fsa.gov.uk

The FSA has regulatory responsibility for investment business in the United Kingdom, answering through the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to Parliament, for the exercise of the powers it was delegated under the Financial Services Act of 1986. During the course of 2001, the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 will replace the 1986 Act. The FSA will be resonsible under the new act for regulating investment, banking, insurance and other financial business.

Securities and Futures Authority
5 The North Colonnade

Canary Wharf
London E14 5HS
44 (020) 7676 1000; fax 44 (020) 7676 1099
E-mail: c.dell@fsa.gov.uk;
Web: www.sfa.org.uk

The SFA is responsible for regulating firms involved in securities, commodities and financial futures, and traded options and derivatives. Its aim is to promote and maintain high standards of integrity and fair dealing. thereby providing effective protection for the investor. It licenses firms that are deemed to be “fit and proper, and enforces its rules by a monitoring process and disciplinary action as neccessary.

Checking on your broker.
Most of us only will be involved with an industry regulator when we check on the disciplinary history (or lack thereof) of our brokers and trading advisors. For U.S.-based firms, your best source of information is the National Futures Association (NFA).

The NFA is the self-regulatory organization for the futures industry. Certain futures firms, like commodity trading advisors and brokers, are required to become NFA members. The NFA has made it easy for customers to check on registered firms by calling the NFA’s Disciplinary Information Access Line (Dial). It is a toll-free clearinghouse of disciplinary information about futures firms and individuals.

Dial can be reached from anywhere in the United States at (800) 676-4632 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. (CST). The information can be provided over the phone or via U.S. mail at no charge. Callers who believe they have been approached about a fraudulent or abusive telemarketing scheme may be referred to the NFA’s compliance staff, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) or the National Fraud Information Center.

Recently, the NFA made accessing Dial significantly easier. At www.nfa.futures.org, Web surfers can access the NFA’s entire database, look up NFA members by name, firm or number and can see how many complaints have been filed against that member. For copies of most complaints, you’ll still have to call, though.

Dial offers information on the 150,000 individuals and 10,000 firms registered with the NFA. Available information includes the following:

* Disciplinary data such as member responsibility actions and decisions by the NFA’s membership committee or business conduct committee;

* Information on the registration history of firms and individuals;

* Information about NFA arbitration cases in which decisions have been rendered since 1990;

* Disciplinary records from futures exchanges for all but the most minor of offenses (decorum or clothing related, for example).

Dial’s clearinghouse covers all actions taken by the NFA since its inception in October 1982 as well as all administrative and injunctive actions taken by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) since 1975. Dial also includes actions taken by U.S. futures exchanges since at least Jan. 1, 1990. Futures exchanges who contribute information to the Dial service include the Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Kansas City Board of Trade, Minneapolis Grain Exchange, New York Mercantile Exchange, and New York Board of Trade and its affiliates,
United States

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Three Lafayette Centre
1155 21st St., Northwest
Washington, DC 20581
(202) 418-5498; fax (202) 254-6265
E-mail: opa@cftc.gov; Web: www.cftc.gov

 

Eastern region headquarters

One World Trade Center, Suite 3747
New York, NY 10048
(212) 466-2061; fax (212) 466-5723

Central region headquarters

300 S. Riverside Plaza, Suite 1600 North
Chicago, IL 60606
(312) 353-5990; fax (312) 353-2993

Southwest region headquarters

4900 Main St., Suite 721
Kansas City, MO 64112
(816) 931-7600; fax (816) 931-9643

Western region headquarters
Murdock Plaza
10900 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 400
Los Angeles, CA 90024
(310) 443-4700; fax (310) 443-4745

The CFTC is the federal agency responsible for regulating all futures trading in the United States. Established April 15, 1975, it has regulatory jurisdiction over new futures areas such as currencies and financial futures with tile traditional commodities previously administered by tile Commodity Exchange Authority.

Federal Reserve Board
20th & C Streets Northwest
Washington, DC 20551
(202) 452-3000
Alan Greenspan, chairman
Office of Public Affairs: (202) 452-3204
Publications Services: (202) 452-3245

Web: www.federalreserve.gov

The Federal Reserve Board is responsible for the monetary policy of the United States.

National Association of Securities Dealers

1735 K St. Northwest
Washington, DC 20006

Media Relations: (202) 728-8884; fax (202) 728-6993

Web: www.nasd.com

Frank G. Zarb, chairman and CEO, NASD
Alfred R. Berkeley, president, Nasdaq Stock Market
Mary L. Schapiro, president NASD Regulation

New York office:

33 Whitehall St.
New York, NY 10004
(212) 858-3949

NASD is the largest securities industry self-regulatory organization in the United States. Through its subsidiaries, NASD Regulation Inc. and the Nasdaq Stock Market Inc., it develops rules and regulations, provides a dispute resolution forum, conducts regulatory reviews of members’ activities, and designs, operates and regulates securities markets for the benefit and protection of the investor.

National Futures Association

200 W. Madison St., Suite 1600

Chicago, IL 60606-3447

(312) 781-1300; fax (312) 781-1467
(800) 621-3570

John Greenwood, Financial Post
Published: Wednesday, August 20, 2008

The bizarre career of renegade hedge fund manager Paul Eustace appeared to be near the end of its trajectory on Tuesday as a U. S. court ordered him to pay US$291-million in restitution and penalties after the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission accused him of defrauding clients.

As head of Philadelphia Alternative Asset Management Co. (PAAM), Oakville, Ont.-based Mr. Eustace is alleged to have racked up more than $200-million of losses on wrong-way trades that he then tried to conceal by falsifying account statements, leading to the collapse of the fund in 2005.

Court documents allege Mr. Eustace made liberal use of investor funds, spending $2-million on such things as his children’s private-school fees and even a breast augmentation operation for his mistress, a former dancer at the Locomotion strip club in Mississauga, Ont.

“This concludes a successful effort by our division of enforcement to stop fraud in its tracks, return as much money as possible to defrauded investors, and to bring wrongdoers to justice,” the CFTC said in a statement.

Mr. Eustace, now a legal assistant at an Oakville law firm, could not be reached for comment.

Though PAAM’s clients were mostly American, Mr. Eustace ran the operation from Oakville, trading mostly in futures and options. According to the CFTC, the losses and fraudulent cover-up took place between 2001 and 2005, culminating in a move by Canadian and U. S. regulators to close down the fund.

Clark Hodgson, the receiver, aggressively pursued the assets, launching a series of lawsuits against MF Global, the former brokerage unit of Man Group, and Swiss banking giant UBS, accusing them of abetting Mr. Eustace.

(Both cases were settled out of court.)

So far, the receiver has recovered about 70% of the missing funds, said Keith Dutill, a lawyer for Clark Hodgeson. “It’s a substantial amount and we believe we recovered all there is to recover,” he said.

In the wake of his fund’s collapse, Mr. Eustace filed for personal bankruptcy. He was later found in contempt of court for trying to sell assets that had been frozen by the court.

“He had hidden money and used it for personal purposes,” said Mr. Dutill.

Born in the United States, Mr. Eustace graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1987 and went to work for high-profile Chicago hedge fund manager Trout Trading Co. in 1990.

A few years later he was dispatched to Toronto to set up a new office, so he moved with his wife and two children to the bedroom community just west of Toronto.

That’s when he became acquainted with Denise Nadeau, a dancer at the nearby Locomotion Cabaret strip club. According to court documents, the relationship turned into an affair as Mr. Eustace showered the youthful Ms. Nadeau with gifts and brought her along on business trips.

After he left Trout Trading to start his own firm, the gifts including a breast-enlargement operation — continued. Only now he began paying for them with clients’ money, court documents show.

The documents say he paid her debts; he even bought her a house. When the relationship fell apart, the largesse continued, partly because Mr. Eustace feared Ms. Nadeau might reveal the relationship to his wife.

http://www.financialpost.com/money/taxes/Story.html?id=735125

2nd Judge Rejects Hedge-Fund Swindler’s Guilty Plea
http://www.wnbc.com/news/17109199/detail.html

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — A federal judge has ruled that the New York hedge-fund swindler who faked his suicide rather than report to prison is not competent enough to plead guilty for going on the lam.

Samuel Israel III told Judge Kenenth Karas in White Plains that he is being weaned from painkillers and is “about 70 percent” in terms of thinking clearly.

Karas ruled that 70 percent is not good enough, and scheduled Israel’s next hearing for Sept. 16.

Earlier Wednesday, a magistrate had refused to take Israel’s guilty plea for technical reasons.

If the plea is ever accepted, it could mean as much as 10 years added to Israel’s 20-year sentence for fraud.

Israel, 49, said “Guilty” Wednesday morning when Magistrate Judge Lisa Margaret Smith asked him how he pleaded to a charge of failure to surrender. But the magistrate said, “It has to be `Not guilty’ at this point,” apparently because some federal judges prefer not to have the magistrate judge accept guilty pleas.

The case was then assigned to Karas, and Smith said, “Judge Karas is taking his own guilty pleas at this time.” An afternoon session with Karas was then scheduled.

http://www.wnbc.com/news/17112783/detail.html

August 6, 2008
Just as he was about to admit in court Wednesday that he had faked his suicide to avoid going to prison, hedge-fund swindler Samuel Israel III told the judge that treatment for his addiction to painkillers had affected his ability to think clearly.

The result was a six-week postponement, despite Israel’s objections.

If his plea is ever accepted, Israel, 49, could have as many as 10 years added to his 20-year sentence for bilking investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Israel’s drug therapy came up when Judge Kenneth Karas asked several questions meant to make sure that a defendant entering a guilty plea knows what he is doing. When Karas asked about medications, Israel said he was being weaned off the painkiller fentanyl — which had been prescribed after several back surgeries — with methadone.
When the judge asked him to rank his clear-mindedness on a scale of 1 to 100, Israel, wearing an untucked brown T-shirt and a salt-and-pepper beard, said, “About 70 percent.” He professed his desire to go ahead with the plea, saying, “I certainly can understand what’s going on here.”