Wholesale Markets Brokers' Association Americas Inc.

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The Wholesale Markets Brokers' Association Americas Inc. was formed by a group of North America's leading inter-dealer brokers to promote the standards of the industry and a better understanding of the role played by wholesale brokers in the functioning of financial markets.

The five founding members of WMBA Americas are BGC Partners, GFI Group, ICAP, Tradition, and Tullett Prebon. They founded the association on July 13, 2009.

The association seeks to work with Congress and key public policymakers on future regulation and oversight of over-the-counter (OTC) markets and their participants. ^[1]

Contents 1 History 2 SEFCON II, October 3, 2011 3 Key People 4 References

History

The WMBAA was formed in July 2009 in order to "promote the quality and standards of the industry and a better understanding of the critical role played by wholesale brokers in the efficient functioning of financial markets."^[2]

WMBAA participates in regulatory hearings and roundtables, especially those concerning swap execution facilities (SEFs), a new type of entity created by the Dodd-Frank Act. The association hosts an annual conference in New York on swap execution facilities, "SEFCON."

On October 12, 2011, Giancarlo testified before the House Committee on Agriculture on the subject of proposed changes to the Dodd-Frank Act regarding swap execution facilities.^[3] His testimony was summarized into a commentary featured on MarketsReformWiki.

SEFCON II, October 3, 2011

On October 3, 2011, the WMBAA hosted its second annual swap execution facilities conference, "SEFCON II" at the Grand Hyatt, New York. The keynote speaker was CFTC chairman Gary Gensler, who spoke about Dodd-Frank, the need for transparency, and the "made available to trade" mandate. ^[4] Other notable speakers at SEFCON II were MarketAxess CEO Richard McVey, former CFTC Chairman Walt Lukken, Congressman Michael Conaway, and CFTC Commissioner Scott O'Malia. ^[5]

Key People

• Chris Ferreri, chairman; managing director, ICAP
• J. Christopher Giancarlo, vice-chair; VP, corporate development, GFI Group
• Shawn Bernardo, former chairman; Senior Managing Director, Tullett Prebon

References

1. ↑ WMBA. WMBA.
2. ↑ Wholesale Market Brokers form New Association. WMBA Americas.
3. ↑ Hearing to review legislative proposals amending Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. House Committee on Agriculture.
4. ↑ Remarks before the Swap Execution Facility Conference. CFTC.
5. ↑ SEFCON II Program. Flagg Management.