Seeking Harmony

By Lisa Valentine

Even before the Labor Day holiday on September 7, which signifies the de facto end of summer for the U.S., the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have scheduled meetings for September 2 and September 3 to discuss how the agencies should work together and to “build on the progress the CFTC and SEC have made on designing a framework to regulate OTC derivatives,” said SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro in a statement.

Gary Gensler, CFTC Chairman, said the meetings will help the agencies “harmonize regulatory policies to improve market integrity by applying consistent standards to market participants.” Gensler listed three areas of concern: how to bridge the gaps between the authorities granted to the SEC and CFTC; how to lessen regulatory overlap; and to bring consistency to similar products, practices, and markets.

Harmony won’t be easy to achieve as two agencies seek to overcome years of independence but harmony is a goal well worth pursuing and is critical to the government’s effectiveness in protecting investors.